Green Fireball of December 20, 1948
A greenish-white fireball observed by Los Alamos AESS Inspectors descended at 45 degrees, then leveled off to a nearly horizontal path at 2.3 miles altitude for 7-9 miles at 3.75-7.5 miles per second with no sound.
“It is found that the fireball doubly observed by Messrs. Wilson, Truett, Strang, and Skipper appeared at a height of at least 10 miles and descended at an angle of about 45° to the vertical (according to Truett's estimate) to point C at an elevation of only 2.3 miles above the horizontal plane...from C to its point of disappearance E, the fireball followed a nearly horizontal path approximately 7-9 miles long, moving with a velocity of between 375 and 7-5 miles per second”
Verbatim from DOW-UAP-D017.pdf · View original on war.gov
Case details
- Date
- 1948-12-20
- Date exactness
- Known to the day
- Location
- Los Alamos, New Mexico
- Country
- United States
- Region
- New Mexico
- Branch
- USAF
- Unit
- Office of Special Investigations, District No. 17
- Sensors
- eyewitness
- Shape
- Fireball
- Altitude
- 12100 ft
Resolution
Non-meteoric; observed descending branch with nearly horizontal path continuation, no sound reported
Source document
Quote checked against the original file.
This sighting
Los Alamos, New Mexico / 1948
- DOW-UAP-D017.pdf — Written report of this sighting