UFOB INDEX CARD 2. LOCATION CONCLUSIO NS Was Balloon ME:XICO BEACH, FWRIDA P robobl y B alloon Possbly Balloon DATETIME GROUP TYPE O F OBSERVATION 0 Ground Visual 0 GroundRodar 0 Was A1 r-:rcft 0 Pro bob I y A~rcroft 0 A ir-Visual 0 Airl11tercept Radar 0 Poss1bly A.rcroft Was Astronomical 0 Probably Astronomical Po s s bl y Astronomi col LENGTH O F OBSERVATION N UMBER OF OBJECT S 9. COURSE 0 Oth~r lnsuff c1ent Data for Evolu<. , ., 'U:lX ONE :OOWWAFD BRIEF SUMMARY OF SICHTING 11. COMMENTS DESCRIBED AS A FL.L'WIG MISSILE. NO INV~STICATION ON THIS SIGHTING AlSOP FormS (15 Oct 54) CONTEMPLA ~...J) T HREE OF J~SY0 6 -.. ::ILIT.ll.F.Y JC COOl( 2r0 LT CSA:':::) .... ,:zATHZF~ AtJD l_.Jii~DS .O.LOFT P.T Tr::: A::D PLACE: OF sr::HTING: 2 . S URFACf. 03~ 16,0-~FEET 27C D~GREES/~ dt VIS I ; ,J LIT': :-.C\ GF. F 0 UP. OF Jf.S YQ 6 OE 3 FSc IN AREA ALL .P.EPO~:Tii 11. OPERATIONS OFFICE, rAX~ELL FLIGHT OUT OF TilE SKY: ~IETEORS A~D FIREBALLS About one o'clock iu the afte rnoon on November 30, 1954, a spec- tncular me teor ffared acros s the ~outht-aslern part of the United States and exploded. ~Iany persom in .\Iaham:\, Georgia, and ~Iis sis!>ippi saw the bright flash hig h in the sky, followed by a trail of ke, and heard three violent d e tonations. Ove r the town of Syln.cauga, Alabama, a nine-pound fragm ent of the falling meteori<:: body crashed through the roof of a house, bruised the le ft ann and h in of the unluckv resid ent, and came to rest on the Boor. ~{embers of the American ~leteoritics Society c ollecte d d e tailed d escriptions of the eve nt from ma ny witne~ses a nd added this d aylight fireball official list of observed meteorite falls from which meteorites arc recovered [ 1 , p. 128]. UFO addicts, however, apparently reg~nded b oth th e meteor and its fragments as unnatural phenomena. und a leading expon ent of the saucer theory characterized the bright flush as "mysterious," the explosions as both "strange'" and .. mysterious," the njne-pound frag- ment as a "s hining black object .. that was "Ia be led,. a meteorite, and the entire incident as ''a queer business" [2, p. 23 1T To the astronomer who specializes in the"sTuCly-of meteors the only "queer" aspect of the episode is that saucer publications list so few mysterious UFOs for tha t particular week when similar spec- tacular fireballs were almost a commonplace in the southeast states. On November 29 a me teor He w over Alabama a t 5: 30 P.~r., and ab out two hours Inte r another with a long tail soare d ove r Florida. On .:\!ovember 30 a t s:oo P.~L. a fe w hours after th e fall a t Sylacauga , another bright fireball Ba!)hed over Alaba ma. Shortly b e for e mid- night the same n ight a me teor flamed over I\orth Carolina, so bril- lia nt that its copper-green light illuminated the interi or of cars on the highway; blne-green Ilre shot out above the treetops, changed magnesium white, and then slowly faded. Ot.>tail~d ob~ervations of all the~e appeared 111 th e scientific journ al ).f eteoritics [ 1 , p . 128] . . ..., ltnd her husbaiidsa id they planned lshP. ran outside after regainJng he r to demand that the Air Force re-'compo~ure and saw, about ;~ mile ! tu<n the stone-like o bject to them up. "a ki nd o f boiling ::.moke. " as a !>OU\emr. 1 Edilor J:ctmes E. )Iills of the She ..,aid she '"a" lying on het Scripp::.-doward Birmmgham Post sofa whe n s~e hea.r~ I he explosion Herald saw the phenomenon south- tha t was platnly v t. tble t o persons e ast of Btrmin~ham . ilom Atlanta to Greenvtlle . . ".\-liss. n looked somethin~ uke a sh~l " ~A few seconds la ter . she liatd, the . meteorite came tea t'lng throu~h the I burst but ga"e o(i whtte smok.? -f. J' roof o( her home. Then it trailed off in a spiral 100. ~ t~ }trs. Hodges, .. who was later feet be]ow: and -:':"as. visib~e f o r f IJteB!~.!foP sh~k and bruises-, sal~ about-15 rrunutes, ~w~. saJ_d. 1IETEORITE STRUCK MRS. HEWLETT HODGES .: t'hiPf Ashcraft Holds Evidence; Mayor How~rd, right.-AP. FELL THROUGH ROOF Wontan Deinands A. F . Return Fallen Meteorite ;;"L.\CAUGA. Ala., Dec. !.-~explosion visible in three states . . -~I.rs." H~ett Hodges, the A helicopter crew from Maxwell r known person ever struck by rur F orce base, Ala., flew to Mrs. :iillin~ meteorite, demanded to-Hodges' home to examine the ob- "' that the Air Force return the ject and the Air Force said it would :-, hat ripped into her home and l be takeri to Air Force laboratories _::-ed her. in Washington. . 1e meteorit e . sLx or e ight Sylaoauga :uayor Ed J. How- "-"S in diameter, fell through ard, apparently unaware of the r oot leaving a three-foot hole Air Force's plan.<~, said th e nine r .;o"Uck her on the hip and hand pound obj~t would be placed tn ~rday afternoon . She was onJy the state museum of na.tu.r:}l his-- :;-:tJy in jured, however, by the tory a t th'e Univ~"ity of Ala.- ,....t thaj. :na~ ha\'e been one of bama in Tuscalntlo4a. - - - ... , that (ell from a 40-mile high But the 32-year-old Mrs. 'Bodg~ -~ATlC:~To;Yf v . Clobberina ~' '(M eteorie ; The star that fell on Alabama -a meteorite that clobbererl into a living r oom and struck a house- wife-was slated to arrive at Wright-Patterson Air Force base Friday afternoon for study. rur Technical Intelligenc e . cen- ter officials will examine-the n ine-pound rock b efore return- ing it to its star-struck owner Hewlett H odges of Syla - cauga, AJa. Mrs. Hodges was lying on a soft in her home T uesday when the stone crashed throuqh her roof, bruising he r hip a nd hand. Thus she became the o nly human ever known to be struck by a meteorite . The Hodges. who have obtained a n attorney to make sure they get their rock back, said Friday they plan to sell it to the rughest bidder and hope to get more than A Muncie, Ind., munitio ns fac- tory, the Smithsonian institution and the AJabama state museum are r eported all interested in the 1 And ATIC officials a t Wright: \ 1 tterson have promised the qes they will get their meteorite back -in~ ~several J Dece;n~er 1954 W.-\Sl:If:\GTO~ POST nnd ,\.HOCI'lt e c P~u" I .H Ple nri te Right Through the Roof \ Jr ... fl .. "'t .. u Rodt~J (crntrrl l"U brul!f'd Tue~:11 when , ruu \ b v .r m~>t~ort~ whrr h cr:uh~d throutb the roof of t"r "''lacau:: :~ . \ !.1 .. h omr. "tll"!!. Rodcr.s is standln~ broe:uh Itt> h11l .. rn l hto rr>of. Ri~ht, holdlnf metrorit.e fra!lllent., is .Birls A re C'omino In R td" on 'hP nin~>-f)Ounct rn~:fl"'rit ,. thilt p lummel<'ri into a n /\Iaham.; II\ i n!f ro(Jm fo11r d ,l)" 'H~O .:~nrt :.r rurk a hou ... ew tfc>. ''Crt' ! lytn!:: thlf '< 1nd fa~t Sa rurd;~ , . n11r thp mcrrorir~> "'PH , , =1<: np- rount>,~ o f rhe L'. S. ;\ tr Force O rttrrllf<; at \\'right-Pill t'r>on Air Fnrrr h:ts p ";jirf thP rnrk-ori~lnal- 1.'' ~ lart>ri to :trri\:p herr fo r '\n:t ly - " ' " F1d11y afernoon W:\~nt i n y e r. I Btt th,.~ "pN>sum P it'<; f>O r oure. " / I t\tr Techmcaf InrPiti~enc~ ccnr e r , .spt'cmhsrs ''~II study th e mereonre I ht>fo r P r<>rurnjn r 11 to tr<; m v ners . ;\!r. nnr! 1\ l r... Hewlt>tt J!ocl~cs o f Sylaca11~a. Ala. )I 1-:.-\XWHILE, Hodr.{e~ r Pooned rl"rPi\ tr~ :u lea t il b rei" fnr :ne oh; Pr r tnclurlin)t' o nt-from the E',""''tlle ir.d . l public mu-;t>u m ''ill .;>, h<' .>a id to rh~ hi~ht>st h dcl"r . :n~> h :fl :JI'Cl h:tnrl " ' 'hf' ''" ne '' r-pn I~ t'llllr.~('O lnl() h P r hlll'' Tt ,..ci:t \ P 0 ~ T and ..Uaoclat ed ?nu . '1 eJeorite Right Thr . ._ough the Roof ~. 'Hewlett B od~es (center) wu bruised Tuesday when r H'k by a meteorite which erao~hed throuxh the rooi of ~ylacaug-a . -lla., home. )Irs. Bod&"es is standinx beneath nole in the rMf. Rl~ht, holdicf meteorite !rarment, is L\35l~!G'l'C~ POST _\ND TI~IES 1}[ eteorite B ids on the nine-pound meteorite that plummeted into an Alabama livin~ room four days ago and struck a housewife. were flying thick .and fa st Saturday. But the m eteorite itself was ap. parently flying low and slow- courtesy of the U. S. Air F o rce. Officials a t Wright-Patterson Air Force base said the rock-original- ly slated to arrive here for analy- sis Friday afternoon wasn't in yet. But they "presume it's en route." Air Technical Inteliigence center specialists will study the meteorit e before retumjng it to its o .. vners Mr. and ~[rs. Hewlett Hodges of Sylacauga, Ala. 1\fEA..VWHU.E. Hodges reoorted receiving a t least 75 bids fo r the object including one from the Evansville (Ind. ) p ublic museum said to be " in exc es s of S5000." It will ~o. he said, to the hi~best bidder. "' :1\frs. Hodges, who w<ts struck o n hip and hand by the stone whe n !t plum~ed into her ho m e Tuesday. t'\ conftnE'd to a Sylacau~a hosoital rcco\er:~f.:-om b.:-uiSe$.. and nerv- DA?:'ON JOU!cu.r . 9 :u.:u.o dia P1 -l! P! gel~ w:r. .J.S. 1 zjJ .' rf .!n e istheir daughter, ) IeJincia, I l1ere's G~ofd in Tnaf Tn.ar f4efeorife -~ ~, ''"''!d Pus. to keep the meteorite from tts ?atters l)n A ir F o rc e Base. D~.r YLACAt.:GA. Ala .. Dec. 3.-ri;zht!ul owners. ton. Ohio. . ., nwners oith.e only meteor ;\Irs. Hodges WA:i on a sofa A colonel !rom \Vri::;ht-Parter ~ .. r.own to hav tr ck Tuesday when the mnepound son also tel~phoneri :\1r. Hodges u a rock came crashln~ through her and assured him thf> meteorite ""---"'he Gets Back i-~ The Meteorite I That Hit Her: hu:"'1ln satd todav they plan to roof. The meteorite badly would be returned. But he P!! <!":e object "to the rughest bruised her. She entued a has couldn' t say when. ~asbm~ton, Dee. !1 <U.P.>.-~Irc:. !dc.er' ' and hope to get more pttal because of insomnia, she A ;\Iuncie. Ind.. mumoons e~let~ Hodges "'M-hn m->teorite said. factory, the Smithsoruan Insti a4::k: today Tne A i r Poree form "'tr. and Mrs. Hewlett Hodge s The Air F orce now has the tution In Washing on and the lly returned to t.'l e ~.!-:1~-old l ... rl tM, $.}.000 price was sug stone and sent a message to state museum o! na ural htstory ylaenuga, Ala., house'\nfe th~ 10-! .:1-":.ed-b~ attor ney Who was Mr. Hodges last" nJght saying jt are. aman~. those-L'lterested in pocnd meteorite t.hnt a:uned -.lged. to:se rheat no-on-;_ tried was being ~rqdied a t Wright pu:chasing .the ,o.bject: hrou~h the roo i of h~r hom~ ~ov. ; - ;;o and s tr11ck her oo the arm aod DAILY NE\VS ROUND TRIP A lcibarna' s Star N otv Closer To Housetvife Tbe Dalt ='"~ Rur .. au 1 Next week Love adcled the stone I tiH .\lbee Bid,. I ',\ .\SHL"lGTON, Dec. 10 . _ Thel~vtll. be .tur~ed. ovPr to th e S(llith :I' ne-pound, "transient" m~teorite son 1a~ . msu tu u~n for rt thorough \\as on th e next-to-the-last ~ of I sc1enltf1c analrsts. A Cew days a~o .s tra,:els which sraned when it t~e Sm1thson:an told The .Datly lPII from the s kies 10 days ago and ::-J_ew~ bureau Jt would no.~ get mto a bopped an Alabama housewife on btddtng ''~r for the obJect. Lht' arm while she was resting. The national museum su ested DPmocratic Rep. Kenneth A. :\!rs. Hod~es accept .. an ofre: 1 Roberts of Alabama said Hue! :.VI ~.JOOO for the meteor w1th a ktss. , Love, an attorney from Ta!Jada~a: i1 she .coul~ get it. T~at came 1.\la., oblained the m eteo r i e for from Steg~ted Weng. dtrector of :\Irs . Hulet Hodges, Salacauga, the EvansvtlJe,_ Ind. museum and ~ 1.-\la . . housewife. in a ceremony in for.mer Day-coP!an. ' 1:.;; o 1fice yesterday. RPJ'). Robem said t h e Al~ F nrcA turned over thf'l 'ton!'l to r.u,~>. who r epres4"n ted :'\Irs. l l nc1::P.s, attfor h e ha.d arran~ed f1r Ia r eturn a we .. k ago. The m.-teo r had be~n under 'Stl1dy a t lht-\ir Tec h n iC'al Jntellh;e n'e 1 lllPr a t Wright Patterso n j\l r r.,rre ha_,e in Da.yton. :'.! lJ. Gen. Joe \V. Kellv. direct or C'f Air Force liaison o n Caoitol Hill, h,rdorl lt over to attorney Love. t.{~ s ud the Air Force had taken , , .. ~s1on of it last w~>ek as part q.; respons ibility fo r "everything h'1 r rails from the skies. " L l\ F> said :Vlrs. Hodstes plans to 'II the meteor to the highest J, !der. He said sev e ral "fantastic ,: :.r-s have been receivPd. ranging .lf~. H odges is hospita.H:tl!d . Her nttorney, Huel }I. Love of Talladega, Ala.,. accqted the n one Mn. Kawle" HCM&.a- Gd An rJ~ our" mf!t cnit fn>m ~fa}. ~ J"o~ W. K ei!y in tb.e off~e oi R.ep. Kenn.t>th A. Rob- en'! {D-A.Ia .) 3n.d. :said it wryuJd be sold 'o the highest bidder. Lov-e ~id the Bod~es have re- c~i\'(.~ "fantastic offers" for the meteorite, rnngin2 u~ to $ .. ,0,000. He ~aid he WCMald tWill ~ SlOne over t o th~ Smikilsoui:m Iustitution for a tho~u~ s cientific analysis before i t is ~fd. '""' E. P. Heudet50'1J, associate <::m1uhsocian. tttil a lOT, saHJ tne me- t~rite was the. Wfirst" wrtnessed i:1il tba.l e-Te~ struck a hom an be- i:1~." It smashed through the roof oi the Hod~ borne and struck ~.! n. ffoc'~ a s s~ lay on a couch. Kelly snid the. AU F ul'ce. took :empora.ry tlO~ oi :be stone a;; pan of its respo.n:ribtlicy-for I:!Yuy\Aiac t.bar b i b from the When , J ohn Donne wrote "Go and. Wa.sh.in(ton f or scientific researcr. The catch & falling star" b e thought be. wa.s museum, located in Tuscaloosa, s ays 1t creating an .i.ma,ge of impossibility. But wants the.meteorite for display purposes. Mrs. Hulett Hodges of Sylacauga, Ala., Mrs. Hodges, who obviously is~ fo:-th- :'"h perhaps does.:l't read John Donne r lght woman, says she want;s the meteor- (few people...do, these days), very nearly ite neither .for display nor for resear ch. caught 1L .fallinr, star. .Rather, it ,very She merely wants to preserve it , in the l;:l:learJy caught her. She was struck on the good old American fashion, as a souvenir hlp and hand by a meteorite that. .ripped to talk about when !o1ks drop in. thiongh the root or her home while she Science, or course, must be served, and wa.s taking a nap. It v:.as only a nine-perhaps some kind of a compromise can pound meteorite, -en astral ;.fragment be worked out whereby the Air--For ce can :-w:hich the skies will never miss, But to conduct its experiments' and return t he 'l.!ri. Hodges, 1t is her meteorite, ~er per-. meteorite forthWith t6 Mrs: Hodges. In :raonal evidence that stars once really fell her turn,she might be w1mng to lend it :On Alabama. . ~ .r to' th~ museum occasionallr, say on a.l- Now .they want to take it away from ternate .sundays. But .it might well .Ot: :-her ... They" means the Air. Force and the made the law of:tbe land: any meteorite :State Museum of Natural History. The falling on any person shall belong to Air Force bas taken possession of the said person. Let others z"o a