Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization Correspondence Regarding Flying Saucers

This document collection comprises correspondence and internal records from the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) in Australia, spanning from 1952 to 1957. The file documents the organization's administrative response to public inquiries regarding 'flying saucers.' The correspondence reveals a consistent policy: the CSIRO maintained that it possessed no special knowledge or scientific expertise regarding these phenomena and frequently directed enquirers to the Department of Civil Aviation. Several letters detail specific sighting reports from citizens, such as Bernard A. McCarthy in Esperance (1957) and E. R. May in Grenfell (1952). These reports describe luminous, egg-shaped objects exhibiting unusual flight characteristics, including rapid movement, stopping, and reversing. The CSIRO's responses to these individuals were polite but dismissive, often citing a lack of evidence or suggesting that the organization was not the appropriate body for such investigations. Internal communications between the Chairman, Dr. I. Clunies Ross, and the Minister, R. G. Casey, indicate that the government was aware of the public interest in the topic. Notably, Dr. Bowen suggested that some sightings might be related to meteor showers, a theory that the Minister found potentially promising as a 'complete answer.' The file also includes a request from a Chicago Daily News correspondent seeking information for a global survey on the subject, to which the CSIRO responded that they had no reports deserving of serious consideration. The documents collectively illustrate the Australian government's approach to UAP during the 1950s, characterized by a lack of formal investigation and a tendency to categorize reports as either natural phenomena or matters outside their scientific purview.