THE INCIDENT AT ROSWELL
The discovery of a “flying saucer” in the desert outside of Roswell, New Mexico in the summer of 1947 remains a landmark moment in the history of the “UFO debate” in the United States. On July 7, 1947, a sheep rancher named W. W. Brazel found that some sort of aircraft had crashed in one of his fields outside of Roswell, New Mexico. Unable to identify the craft or its origin, the rancher contacted authorities and an Army intelligence officer from the nearby Roswell Army Air Field (RAAF) base. The officer came to investigate the scene of the crash. The Army intelligence officer, Major Jesse Marcel, later recalled that the craft “bore no resemblance to any aircraft he had been trained to recognize” (Sobel). Marcel was unable to identify the material which composed the bulk of the aircraft, and reported that the craft was marked with “hieroglyphics” which he was unable to decipher. The debris was collected and brought to a base in Fort Worth, TX for further examination.
On Tuesday July 8th, 1947, the Roswell Daily Record published a story about the incident, titled “RAAF Captures Flying Saucer on Ranch in Roswell Region.” The story spread quickly, in part because it was the first time the use of the term “flying saucer” had been attributed to the United States military, giving the story an extra degree of credibility. The American public waited anxiously for additional information regarding the “flying saucer” and its origin. The next day, July 9th 1947, the Army announced that the “flying saucer” was in fact a weather balloon, effectively ending all discussion about the incident.
Over 60 years later, the majority of the public’s questions about the Roswell incident remain unanswered. What, exactly, was it that crashed in the desert outside of Roswell that fateful day? If it was, in fact, a weather balloon, why did it take multiple Army intelligence officers at multiple locations over 24 hours to identify it? If the debris found was that of a simple weather balloon, why does the government remain so secretive about the incident? Why have important pieces of information, such as initial reports by those involved in the investigation, conveniently gone missing? Although the government’s secrecy concerning Roswell is certainly not definitive proof that the “flying saucer” was of extraterrestrial origin, the withholding of certain information surely makes us wonder what we don't know about the incident. What information about Roswell does the government have that it is not willing to share? And more importantly, why is this
information being concealed?
The discovery of a “flying saucer” in the desert outside of Roswell, New Mexico in the summer of 1947 remains a landmark moment in the history of the “UFO debate” in the United States. On July 7, 1947, a sheep rancher named W. W. Brazel found that some sort of aircraft had crashed in one of his fields outside of Roswell, New Mexico. Unable to identify the craft or its origin, the rancher contacted authorities and an Army intelligence officer from the nearby Roswell Army Air Field (RAAF) base. The officer came to investigate the scene of the crash. The Army intelligence officer, Major Jesse Marcel, later recalled that the craft “bore no resemblance to any aircraft he had been trained to recognize” (Sobel). Marcel was unable to identify the material which composed the bulk of the aircraft, and reported that the craft was marked with “hieroglyphics” which he was unable to decipher. The debris was collected and brought to a base in Fort Worth, TX for further examination.
On Tuesday July 8th, 1947, the Roswell Daily Record published a story about the incident, titled “RAAF Captures Flying Saucer on Ranch in Roswell Region.” The story spread quickly, in part because it was the first time the use of the term “flying saucer” had been attributed to the United States military, giving the story an extra degree of credibility. The American public waited anxiously for additional information regarding the “flying saucer” and its origin. The next day, July 9th 1947, the Army announced that the “flying saucer” was in fact a weather balloon, effectively ending all discussion about the incident.
Over 60 years later, the majority of the public’s questions about the Roswell incident remain unanswered. What, exactly, was it that crashed in the desert outside of Roswell that fateful day? If it was, in fact, a weather balloon, why did it take multiple Army intelligence officers at multiple locations over 24 hours to identify it? If the debris found was that of a simple weather balloon, why does the government remain so secretive about the incident? Why have important pieces of information, such as initial reports by those involved in the investigation, conveniently gone missing? Although the government’s secrecy concerning Roswell is certainly not definitive proof that the “flying saucer” was of extraterrestrial origin, the withholding of certain information surely makes us wonder what we don't know about the incident. What information about Roswell does the government have that it is not willing to share? And more importantly, why is this
information being concealed?