Pulp Magazine Cover, March 1950

This document is not a pulp magazine but rather a declassified U.S. Air Force intelligence report concerning the Farmington, New Mexico UFO sighting of March 17, 1950. The text describes an incident in which objects numbered between 500 and thousands were observed flying over the town at approximately 10:15 A.M., moving at high speeds in erratic patterns. The report provides the prosaic explanation: a Skyhook balloon launched from Holloman Air Force Base near White Sands had burst at 60,000 feet in cold atmosphere, disintegrating into hundreds of plastic fragments that floated over the town, shining in sunlight and creating the appearance of flying saucers. The document is marked as containing national security information and notes restrictions on distribution and reproduction.