Los Alamos: Conference on green fireballs

Event Details On 16 February 1949, a key conference occurred at Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory in New Mexico, focusing on mysterious aerial lights known as green fireballs. Attendees included military personnel, meteor expert Lincoln LaPaz, physicists Norris E. Bradbury, Marshall Holloway, Frederick Reines, and Edward Teller. Notably, no representatives from Project Grudge participated.

Key Discussions LaPaz highlighted differences: typical meteors show blue-green hues and rarely follow long horizontal paths at steady speeds, unlike these pale or yellow-green fireballs. He identified about 10 strong matches and 20 possible cases. Teller suggested they could be electrical-optical effects. Navy Commander Richard S. Mandelkorn expressed worry in his report about repeated events near critical facilities.

Outcomes and Significance Participants decided to establish observation posts with cameras and tools to capture data on trajectories, speeds, and compositions. This meeting underscored early U.S. efforts to scientifically probe UFO-related sightings, linking to later projects like Twinkle, amid national security fears during the Cold War era.