UAP Reported at Sandia Base, 1948-1950

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R/D- tw
8-10-49
AN AT'l!EMP? 'ro coU.roT AnBCP.NE PAU'ICLES
A'3SOOIA'l'ED fJI'l'iJ THE FIREBALL OF JULY 241 1949
By
• n. Oroztor
and
Ben x. Seely
HBTHOD
A 'fireball was raportad to have pasaod ovor the general noighborhood of
Socorro, Uew Uexi.00 1 at 8:26 p.m. 1 J'uly 241 1949.
Impaotment equipment, develop9d
in conneation 1a th the sarosol research proJect ot the New Mex1 co School of !lines,
was available, and it was decided to make systematic collections ot airborne me.ter­
- iel. in the hope ot obta1nill8 material that could be associated .-1th the t1reball.
For the present report it is suftio1ent to state that the equipnant processed air
at the rate ot about J4 11tera per minute, the particles being separated f'rom the
air by -impactment against en adhesi'f9-coate~ plate in an air jet.
Appro:d!natel.y
ninety per cent of airborne particlee with dianeters greater than one micron are
collected.
Tho adheeive used. on the collecting plates (mcroscope slides) waa a glycerin­
gelatin tlixture w1th an a.dd1tion or rubeanic aeid (dithiooxamide. )
'l'lus reagent
was used to enable identifioation of copper or copper compounds; it also enables
identification of nickel and cobalt.
After ?C:lking the eollaotions, the slides were
covered with e. Saran til::l, after which thoy were exposed to strong aomonia vapor
for r1:tteon Jninutes to effect partial ao lution or any copp_er or copper oxide parti­
el.Gs.
R ESULT S
'?he first oolleotion was made at 10:00 a . m., .ruly 25, about thirteen and one­
he.lf houra after the fireball was seen.
The air wan te.lcen about twelve teet above
ground lovel, on t he Ol!!'.IJ>UO ar the School ot Uines.
Tho first run was i'or three min-
,
utes , ll['COosaing cbout 102 liters of air.
Sevoro.l large particles wero :round in it
that gave J)ositiva co pe.r teats. In at least ono or these the copper reaction was
aeen petore the cn::mx>ni c tro~ont, indicating the presence 9f at least a trace of a
aoluble copper co~pound.
The sizes of particles aoon in tho first oollections ranged
up to over one hundred microns in the largest dimension: the largest particles gave
tho impression o~ bein.g f'r8gl:lents or a so:i:ievm.at f'ibrous material, llith the smaller
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NND 58378