1949 in UFO history
From the UAP Encyclopedia, the open encyclopedia of UFO and UAP history · 📅 Year
Contents 5
| Year | 1949 |
|---|---|
| Events | 3 |
| Decade | 1940s |
| Topics | Government programs (topic), Crashes & retrievals (topic), Beings & bodies (topic), Nuclear & missile sites (topic) |
| Timeline | 1949 on the UAP Timeline |
1949 in UFO history — the UAP Timeline records 3 events in 1949, mostly about government programs and crashes & retrievals. People named in these events include Albert Collins, Tim Cooper, Ryan Wood, Harry S. Truman.
Overview
In early 1949 Project Sign issued its final report. It said some UFOs appeared to be real aircraft but that there was not enough data to determine their origin.[1] Sign had already been replaced by Project Grudge, which ran from February 1949 and was later criticised for the low quality of its investigations.[1]
The year's main official puzzle was the "green fireballs" seen over New Mexico since late 1948. On 13 January 1949 an Army intelligence director in Texas wrote that they might come from "radiological warfare experiments by a foreign power" and should be studied because they occurred near sensitive installations.[2] A February 1949 conference at Los Alamos, attended by Project Sign members, Edward Teller and other scientists, could not identify them.[2] In December the network of observation posts called Project Twinkle was set up. It was never fully implemented and later concluded the fireballs were probably natural.[2] Astronomer Donald Menzel said he saw one near Alamogordo in May 1949 and judged it an ordinary meteor.[2]
The timeline's 1949 entries are all unverified claims. Scientist Albert Collins, described by author Tim Cooper, claimed he had analysed strange metal samples later taken away by the Army.[3] An alleged CIA report dated 17 August describes a Defense Department program for exploiting recovered disc technology and a meeting with President Truman.[4] The same date appears on a report from Great Falls Air Force Base about an informant who said he saw seven discs and two crashed ones at Hebgen Lake, Montana. Agents dragged the lake and found nothing.[4]
Events
- Albert Collins metal samples claim (1949) — Scientist Albert Collins claims he studied strange recovered metal samples that the Army later took away.
- Alleged CIA report on recovered disc technology (1949) (17 August 1949) — An alleged CIA report names a secret Defense Department program for exploiting recovered disc technology.
- Hebgen Lake disc report (1949) (17 August 1949) — An Air Force base reports an informant's account of seven discs and two crashed ones; a lake search finds nothing.
People
- Albert Collins — Metallurgist described by author Tim Cooper as having studied recovered crash material; his existence is unconfirmed.
- Tim Cooper — California researcher who said he received many MJ-12-style documents from anonymous sources in the 1990s.
- Ryan Wood — Researcher who published the Majestic documents with his father Robert Wood.
- Harry S. Truman — 33rd U.S. president (1945–53), in office during the first flying disc wave and the start of official UFO studies.
Nearby years
1948 in UFO history · 1950 in UFO history
References
- Unidentified flying object — Wikipedia · en.wikipedia.org
- Green fireballs — Wikipedia · en.wikipedia.org
- UAP timeline published with Michael Shellenberger's 2024 congressional testimony, entry for 1949 (Albert Collins) · oversight.house.gov
- UAP timeline (Shellenberger testimony), entries for 17 August 1949 · oversight.house.gov
Facts in this article are drawn in part from the Wikipedia articles “Unidentified flying object”, “Green fireballs”, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.
This page was last edited on 29 October 2026. Articles are written in our own words from the sources listed under References; disputed claims are attributed to the people who made them.
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