Cincinnati, OhioSeptember 1956

On September 25, 1956, a housewife in Cincinnati, Ohio noticed a white, fibrous substance floating down into her yard. The material was curled and delicate. She collected some of it in a jar and, wondering if she had found something related to "angel hair" reports that were gaining attention in UFO circles at the time, contacted local flying saucer researchers and the U.S. Air Force for analysis.

The Air Force sent the specimen to its technical intelligence laboratory for examination. Working with the Cincinnati Air Pollution Center, scientists conducted chemical and microscopic tests on the material. Their conclusion was clear and direct: the substance was not exotic or otherworldly. It was cuprammonium (Bemberg) rayon, a common industrial fiber used in textile manufacturing. This particular batch appeared to be waste product from a defective filtering system at a local textile factory, which had allowed the fibers to escape into the atmosphere where they were carried on the wind before settling in the housewife's yard.

The case file also documents the investigation of metal fragments that another individual had submitted, claiming they came from an unusual source. After analysis, these too were identified as ordinary industrial material: scrap steel with chromium content typical of what would be used in steel mills or foundries. The Air Force investigators noted the circumstances were suspicious and suggested the items may have been deliberately planted to create a false impression of something extraordinary.

Throughout the file, investigators expressed frustration with what they described as deliberate hoaxing attempts. They documented an interview with a self-appointed UFO investigator who had made claims of finding otherworldly materials and was using these claims to establish credibility in flying saucer circles. The Air Force concluded that such fabrication attempts wasted government time, money, and effort.

The full case file is reproduced below as held by the National Archives, spanning 27 pages of scanned documents.