The Tremonton Film
- On the morning of July 2, 1952, Navy Chief Photographer Delbert Newhouse is driving his family near Tremonton when his wife points out a group of bright objects in the clear sky.
- Newhouse says the objects first looked like silvery discs. By the time his 16mm camera is rolling, he captures about 1,600 color frames of 10 to 12 shining objects milling about and heading west.
- After a long study, the Navy’s photo interpretation lab concludes that the objects are not birds, balloons, aircraft or reflections, and must be ‘self-luminous’.
- In January 1953, the CIA-sponsored Robertson Panel rejects that finding. After watching film of sunlit seagulls, it says the objects’ motion and brightness ‘strongly suggest birds’. Newhouse maintained that what he saw up close were discs.
Key witnesses: Delbert C. Newhouse (U.S. Navy), his wife and two children
Status: EXPLAINED / DISPUTED
