New Mexico L.O.W.F.I

Posts Tagged ‘Green Fireballs’

In honor of the new green comet that will soon be visible from the earth, here is the story of the Emerald Cloud and the White Sands of New Mexico, the home of those famous green meteors called “The Green Fireballs of New Mexico.”

Driving through the tall white sand dunes of the Mojave Desert in California on the way to Phoenix from Claremont during spring break 1967, we were four witnesses to an unusual daylight sighting. One of the passengers in the backseat of Malcolm`s white Volvo drew our attention to the sky out of the back window. What we saw was a set of towering white cumulus cloud flashing from within as when lightning lights up a cloud like a lantern from the inside – except that it was flashing bright green!

We craned our necks and observed it for as long as we could as we drove along trying to imagine what could cause such a sight. Malcolm was headed for home in Albuquerque where his mother worked as a nuclear scientist at Sandia Lab, Kirtland Air Force Base. He said that he would ask her about what we had seen. Back on campus, I inquired about her response as soon as I saw him again. “She said it was a test,” he replied and we bought it at the time, but now I am not so sure.

Read the rest here

My post on green fireballs can be found here.  I hope to eventually get around to writing a follow up post about Project Twinkle.

Below is a blog post I wrote for my Land of Enchantment blog over a year ago.  I don’t normally like to cross post at different blogs, but it happens to be one of the most popular posts at any of my blogs and I plan on following it up soon at this blog with more about Green Fireballs and Project Twinkle.

I never quite realized that green fireballs were seen in NM all the way back in 1949. About 10 years ago I saw what at first I thought was a green fireball, but on closer inspection happened to be a powerful green laser shooting into the sky from Sandia/Kirtland AFB. It was supposedly used for some astronomy purpose was the rumor I heard after inquiring with a few people I thought might know the purpose. After that I assumed that probably all green fireball stories were really just lasers and people unfamiliar with lasers were mistaking them for something mysterious. However, there are several articles at the site where I got the one below that are also early reports. The laser wasn’t invented until 1960 and I believe it was only the ruby laser which was red, it was several years after before there was a green laser so maybe that can’t account for all green fireballs sightings.

There is also another explanation, all the cited sighting of green fireballs prior to 1960 took place near a national lab, or research lab. The one below in Los Alamos, one in Albuquerque where Sandia National Lab is located and a some in Alamogordo, which is next to Holloman AFB and White Sands Missile Range. Is it possible that lasers were really invented long before the public was made aware of them? Really they were invented years before Theodore Maiman patented his ruby laser, but for some reason this was top secret and so Maiman was just allowed to patent it and take credit for inventing the laser?

Just a thought.

Another thing I found interesting was the reference in the article to the thought control office. According to the site I got the article from, the writer is actually being sarcastic and referring to the Atomic Energy Commission. :-)

Los Alamos, New Mexico, Skyliner – 29 Feb, 1949

Flying Green Lights Alert Constabulary
By THE OBSERVER

Shades of the flying saucers!

Los Alamos now has flying green lights.

These will ‘o wisps seen generally about 2 a. m., have alerted the local constabulary and their presence is being talked about in Santa Fe bars.

But local wheels deny any official knowledge of the sky phenomena. Each one passes the buck to another.

FBI Denies

A call to El Paso, Tex., brought official denial from D. K. Brown, head of the Federal Bureau of Investigation district that embraces Los Alamos, that his agency had not been called to deal with the matter.

At the information or thought-control office officials indicated that they knew about the recurring green flame in the sky but indicated that it wouldn’t be wise to write about it.

Capt. Carroll Tyler, project manager, said simply that all he knew about the lights was rumor — the same rumors that everyone is hearing.

Call the Army

At the thought-control office the general reaction was that the matter was out of AEC jurisdiction and the best way to find out what was going on was to call Kirtland Field.

A call to Kirtland showed that an Army captain who asked that his name not be used because he didn’t know anything, didn’t know anything. He was eager to learn, though.

No Speculation

Official reaction was the same on the Hill except for the atmosphere of secrecy that has been thrown about a matter discussed in every saloon and drawing room from here to Santa Fe.

There was even no speculation. Could these be visitors from Mars or from the Russias [sic]? No answer.

But enough competent observers had told this observer that there was indeed something in the wine.

Shott [sic] Down Venus

And something much more tangible than the time last summer when one of the local security officers ordered out tanks and jet planes from Kirtland Field to shoot down a light low on the horizon that happened to be Venus, a well-known planet.

The jet pilots, trigger fingers ready, were disgusted at that alarm. Maybe that’s why they’re now querying the green lights.

Have you seen a green light lately?

http://www.project1947.com/gfb/skyliner.htm

For some reason I always feel a bit nervous whenever I start writing for site, blog or whatever.  I guess that is because I know that I am writing for some new people who don’t know me, so I suppose I should start with a bit of an introduction.

I am Lesley Gunter.  I was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico and still live just a wee bit east of Albuquerque.  Basically a stones throw from the city limits.

I have been interested in fortean subjects my entire life, but it is only the last several years that I have had extra time to devote to those subjects.  Throughout my life I have had many of my own fortean experiences.

Aside for this blog, I write a weekly column (Grey Matters) for Binnall of America.  I have a monthly column in UFO Magazine (Beyond the Dial).  I also sometimes blog at the UFO Magazine blogs and I am the webmistress or web elf (my preference) there.  I have many of my own blogs that I post at too.

My main “field investigation” consists of sitting in my yard and observing chemtrails and odd flying objects, many of which seem to be attracted to the chemtrails.  Most of my research is not what is termed “field research” and relies more on reading and talking with others.

I am not much of a group joiner, but LOWFI didn’t seem to have any strict rules or a certain agenda to push.  Aside from that, I have admired Skylaire for quite a while now and thought it would be fun to be involved in something with her.  With the exception of Nevada’s Jarret Keene and Arizona’s Thomas Cosgrove, I know everyone involved and that they are all people that I don’t mind being associated with.  Of course, if they are smart — they may not feel that way about me.  Just kidding, I am not really that bad (hopefully).  I am sure I will get to know Jarret and Thomas as time goes on.

Now, about my state, New Mexico — lots of fortean phenomenon here.  Obviously, the most well known is the Roswell crash, but there is much more.  Lots of other UFO related stuff like Socorro, Dulce and green fireballs.  There are also Bigfoot and other crypid sightings.  Ancient mysteries like the Anasazi, the Hopi prophecies, the Las Lunas Stone and so on.  Strangely enough there also seems to be many sightings of the devil and demons.  Lots more that I am forgetting right now.  Hopefully we will explore all those things as time goes by.