West Rindge, N. H., July 1948July 1948

On July 7, 1948, several people sitting on a porch in West Rindge, New Hampshire noticed thin curls of smoke rising from a lawn. When they investigated, they found small burned spots about one and a half inches across on the grass. Inside those burned areas lay metallic fragments. Small fires had broken out in dry grass on both sides of a nearby road in a circle roughly 170 feet across.

Scientists at MIT and telephone company engineers examined the metal pieces. They determined the fragments resembled the lining found inside V-2 rocket bombs and the turbine casings of jet aircraft engines. The metallic fragments were machine-tooled, about one-sixteenth of an inch thick, and showed signs of extreme heat. When scientists attempted to reconstruct the object from the pieces, they estimated it had been approximately fourteen inches in diameter.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and military authorities treated the matter as classified information and compiled detailed reports, but the investigation was still ongoing when the case file was compiled. Some experts suggested the fragments might have come from a malfunctioning jet engine, while others considered the possibility of meteorite impact, though MIT's analysis reportedly ruled that out.

The Air Force ultimately categorized this case as unknown. The full case file, comprising 11 pages of investigative reports, scientific analyses, and correspondence, is reproduced below as held by the National Archives.