Camp Hood, TexasJune 1949

On the evening of June 6, 1949, soldiers at Camp Hood, Texas observed unusual lights in the sky that sparked an Air Force investigation.

Two separate groups of military observers reported seeing an orange or yellow glowing object at around 2105 hours (9:05 p.m.). One group, watching from Artillery Observation Post No. 2 using a radar scope, tracked the object for approximately two minutes and forty seconds. They described it as round, about the size shown on their scope display, and roughly one to one and a half miles away. The object appeared to move slowly and glow like a ball of fire. Then, without warning, it seemed to break apart into smaller pieces that vanished almost instantly. The sky was overcast at the time, and the object appeared as dull as a flashlight with a blackout cover.

A second observation team from Artillery Observation Post No. 1, located about half a mile away, saw the same phenomenon from a different angle. They reported an orange or yellow light, roughly the size of a dime held at arm's length, that was fairly dull until it suddenly burst. Parts of it went upward and downward before fading away.

Both groups were experienced military observers and described the incident in considerable detail. Their reports were forwarded to Air Force headquarters and to the Air Materiel Command at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. The Air Force file indicates investigators collected no physical evidence and took no photographs. A newspaper clipping from Miami, Florida, included in the file, mentions a spectacular aerial phenomenon seen in the sky on the same evening, suggesting the objects might have been visible across a wide area.

The Air Force concluded the object was likely a balloon that had burst. The full case file is reproduced below as held by the National Archives, 20 pages.