3 Mi SE of Portales, New MexicoJanuary 1961

Insufficient Data

Summary

Project Blue Book, the U.S. Air Force's 22-year UFO investigation program, opened a case file on a sighting reported from 3 Mi SE of Portales, New Mexico in January 1961. The full case file (4 scanned pages of witness statements, Air Force memoranda, and investigator notes) is reproduced below as held by the National Archives. The Air Force assigned this case to its broader investigation of unidentified aerial phenomena alongside ~12,600 other reports filed between 1947 and 1969. Citation: NARA Record Group 341, Microfilm Publication T1206, Roll 41.

Reported location

3 Mi SE of Portales, New Mexico

Date of incident

January 1961

State / country

NM / US

Page count

4 scanned pages

USAF evaluation

unknown

Microfilm

T1206, Roll 41

Original case file scans

Original case file · scanned by NARAPage 1 of 4

Transcribed text

i SRORGELE I -
A ‘ PROJECT 10073 RECORD CARD :
2
1. DATE 2. LOCATION : 12. CONCLUSIONS |
? |
i / a 4 SUE RIC i ad Fos 00 Was Balloon
14 Jan © i. 3 Til SE of Portales liew MeXicCO 0 Probably Balloon
EE EE ER nA = et ———- a)
3. DATE-TIME GROUP +" TYPE OF OBSERVATION 0 Possibly Balloon
EFI j 0 Was Aircraft
@ 6% Sc 0 Gre -V | DG d-Rodar k
Local Fa ig ici round- Visua roun oda 0 Probably Baverdht
1111227 a , 8 i
PVE AL Sei LS hs a Air Visual 0 Air-Intercept Radar 0 Possibly Aircraft
“5. PHOTOS | SOURCE 0 Was Astronomical MMe Tec EL.
QO Yes EFATP ol Probably Astronomico)
8 No civisian 0 Possibly Astronomical
EL  ————————————— i = T a ———————
7. LENGTH OF 033ERVATION 38. NUMBER OF OBJECTS 9. COURSE 0 THUR Jr Ty
0 Insufficient Data for Evaluction
0D Unknown
LL wo aan |
_ h.5 ses SUSHAN: SS. SW | EN SRNR TEC rr rrr
10. BRIEF SUMMARY OF SIGHTING Burning mass like a ball: COMMENTS[here were NO satellites re- :
wv fire, size of quarter at arm's lengbh. entering at this time. A large number of
Rinish-gresh glove. Black exhaust teail, five people are reported to be seeing balls
N ~- «3 TRAE sab leds) 18 BW alae =) SI Bal oly MIND E a IY. Pe po 1
inches long at QYTS leagtn. Sighted 45° above (OL £43 » floshing across the sky, mosGly
worizon, Gue 11. Disappear nd 20° above horizon, on the West Coast. The description and
A ~.* “ * & ap a. Lona ds Ff Mm 2 ~ & * . ey a -, “.n
| 7°, Disappedt sd instanbanec 151Y. b: 15 characteristic of a firecoalip
ATIC FORM 329 (REV 28 SEP 52) ;
’
Je St tl hin SL ARR 5 1 vt dain

/ 4

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Source: National Archives Catalog · NAID 28991011

Connected across the archive

Places

3 Mi SE of Portales, NM New Mexico

Agencies

United States Air Force

Dates

1961 1961-01-01