FOIA requests at the National Security Research Center

Did you know that a conference was organized at the Lab in 1949 to discuss green fireballs reportedly observed above Los Alamos? Were it not for the Freedom of Information Act, the Lab’s scientific probes into these mysterious sightings might have been lost to time.

Signed into law in 1967, FOIA gives any person the right to access records kept by federal agencies so they can better understand the U.S. government’s operations and activities. Agencies are required to disclose information requested under FOIA, unless that information falls under one or more of nine exemptions protecting interests such as personal privacy, national security, and law enforcement. Often described as the law that keeps citizens in the know about the government, FOIA is a vital part of U.S. democracy. The Laboratory’s FOIA program fields over 100 requests for records each year. As the Lab’s classified research and technical library, dedicated to information stewardship and education, the National Security Research Center regularly assists with these requests—close to half of the yearly volume.

“Fulfilling FOIA requests is an important part of what we do here,” said NSRC senior archivist Daniel Alcazar. “It’s critical to our mission to ensure the public has access to information it has the right to see.” Public queries cover a spectrum of topics, but most involve requests for Manhattan Project–era technical reports and memoranda, Los Alamos–produced historical and scientific films, or documents pertaining to former employees. 

While less common, Alcazar estimates that he also receives a few FOIA requests every year related to unidentified flying objects and other unexplained aerial phenomena.

Project Twinkle: a mysterious hypothesis

Over the years, general FOIA requests about UFO studies at the Lab have led to some fascinating finds. One such example is the rediscovery of archived materials related to the evening of December 5, 1948, when witnesses reported green fireballs moving across the sky over Los Alamos. The fireballs appeared several times over the next three months, flying noiselessly and just within eyesight of residents on the mesa.

Similar phenomena were reported near the Hanford site (a now-decommissioned plutonium production complex in Washington state) and within 400 miles of Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee, another site of nuclear fuel production during the Manhattan Project.

The number of sightings of these phenomena and their proximity to sensitive facilities were of concern to the U.S. government. Could the fireballs be a threat to national security?

In response, a conference was organized at Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory (the Lab’s postwar name) on February 16, 1949, to discuss the strange phenomena.

The conference was attended by scientists such as then–Laboratory Director Norris Bradbury and physicists Frederick Reines and Edward Teller as well as members of the FBI, the Atomic Energy Commission (the precursor to today’s Department of Energy), and the U.S. military. Also in attendance was Lincoln LaPaz, head of the University of New Mexico’s Institute of Meteoritics and a firsthand observer of the green fireballs. The NSRC collections contain the conference minutes.

While the minutes attest that attendees were skeptical of attributing unexplained aerial phenomena to extraterrestrial activity, participants from the Army confirmed that the fireballs had been classed alongside flying discs within Project Grudge (1948–49), one of three consecutive U.S. Air Force studies of reported UFO sightings. (The others were Project Sign (1947–48) and, later, Project Blue Book (1952–69).)

After further discussion, the notion that the green fireballs were a significant national security threat was ultimately dismissed, as were hypotheses involving meteorites, aurora borealis, and weather balloons.

However, the 1949 Los Alamos conference was the beginning of a study called Project Twinkle that aimed to capture further data on the fireball sightings through a network of observation posts and photographic units. Project Twinkle was never fully implemented and was discontinued after two years, with the official conclusion that the green fireballs were likely natural in origin.

Evidence of UFOs in the NSRC?

The NSRC does not appear to have materials on Project Twinkle, although not all the millions of items housed in its collections are easily searchable yet. Forgotten pieces of history are being rediscovered all the time in the ongoing processes of digitization and cataloging.

Whether a FOIA request unearths one of these treasures often depends on how effectively the submitted keywords direct the archivists’ search. If terms provided by a requestor are overly specific, even relevant materials could remain undiscovered. In cases where a query is too broad in scope or does not indicate a specific date range, the Lab’s FOIA team may suggest that the National Nuclear Security Administration, which funnels information requests to the Lab, ask the sender to narrow the topic or timeframe. Once more specific parameters are established, the search for responsive materials can begin.

Keyword searches can also be hindered by the natural evolution of language. The term “UFO,” for instance, has not been used consistently over time. During the 1940s and 1950s, civilians often referred to UFOs as “flying saucers” or “flying discs.” Very few materials in the NSRC collections, in fact, can be found by searching for the keyword “UFO.” The term “UAP”—unexplained aerial phenomenon—is more current, but also less specific.

Information about UAPs or UFOs is more often included within other fields of scientific inquiry. For instance, natural phenomena such as ball lightning and the aurora borealis have been historically misidentified as UFOs. Drones are more recent sources of aerial mystery and misidentification. Each of these terms is a potential keyword that might turn up surprising information, Alcazar said, adding that conducting FOIA searches is always an interesting part of his work.

Fulfilling FOIA requests

By law, the NNSA has 20 days to respond to a FOIA request, which can be a labor-intensive process. Depending on the nature of the request, NSRC staff can spend a significant amount of the allowable time scouring the collections for relevant documents. As one way to help expedite searches, Alcazar keeps a running record of requests and his responses to them, noting the keywords used and applicable search pathways through indices and databases for future reference. Timely responses to FOIA requests often depend on a librarian or archivist’s deep knowledge of a body of records, and yet, in a collection as vast as the NSRC’s, there are almost always new pathways to explore and connections to be made.

“In general, due diligence is so important when it comes to fulfilling any FOIA request,” Alcazar said. “Oftentimes, searches will take you in unexpected directions as you navigate all your leads. That’s the beauty of the collections.”

Editor’s note: Laura McGuiness wrote her master’s thesis at San Jose State University on cataloging UFO materials in libraries.

Bringing UFOS down to earth

On March 11, 1991, LANL hosted a special colloquium, “Bringing UFOs Down to Earth,” by journalist and UFO researcher/skeptic Philip J. Klass, sometimes called “the Sherlock Holmes of ufology.” The event filled the Lab’s Physics Auditorium to capacity.

Ball Lightning

An uncommon form of lightning shaped like a glowing red ball, usually associated with thunderstorms and thought to consist of ionized gas.

Drone

A remotely controlled or autonomous aircraft without a human pilot, crew, or passengers on board. Also called an unmanned aerial vehicle.

Meteorite

A mass of stony or metallic matter fallen to Earth from outer space.

Weather Balloon

An airborne balloon carrying instruments that gather meteorological data.