War.gov PURSUEDepartment of War
GovernmentJuly 2, 1952Analysis complete

DOW-UAP-PR159, Historical Film of Reported UFOs, Utah, 1952

This digitized 16 mm print shows low-detail bright marks against the sky from the 1952 Tremonton film. The official description says missing fixed reference points prevented a conclusive identification. At 00:55 the release changes to unrelated sewing-equipment footage; the record does not explain when or how the material was combined, and the reviewed imagery does not identify the airborne marks.

File
Video · Release 06
Date
July 2, 1952
Location
Tremonton, Utah
Duration
1 min 10 sec

Probed Assessment

Key takeaways

  • The source identifies a 16 mm Kodachrome print recorded near Tremonton on 2 July 1952.
  • Newhouse reported filming a group of bright airborne objects, but the footage lacks fixed reference points for measurement.
  • The surviving digitization changes to unrelated sewing-equipment footage at 00:55.
  • The silent, low-detail imagery does not establish the marks’ identity.

Why it matters

The release makes the surviving Tremonton footage directly inspectable while also exposing the evidentiary limits and unexplained splice in the available print.

Corroboration

The official description, cached playback, and contact-sheet review support the sensor sequence and visible contrast areas only; they do not establish object identity, physical dimensions, independent velocity, or performance. The 15 video tracks are digitally silent, so they contain no speech to transcribe.

Open questions

  • What generation of the film was digitized, and when was the sewing-equipment footage joined to it?
  • Does a version preserving the reported Idaho mountain footage survive?

Probed separates this editorial assessment from the source claims below. It summarizes what the released artifact supports; it is not independent verification.

Official Description from War.gov

This archival footage is a digitization of a 16mm print of Kodachrome color motion-picture film shot on a handheld Bell & Howell Auto Master camera near Tremonton, Utah, on July 2, 1952. U.S. Navy Chief Warrant Officer Delbert C. Newhouse reported observing and filming a group of bright airborne objects and shortly thereafter submitted the footage to the U.S. Air Force. The film later became one of the visual cases reviewed by Project Blue Book, the 1952–1969 U.S. Air Force program that investigated the nature and origin of unidentified flying objects (UFOs). The film’s limited detail and lack of fixed reference points prevented a conclusive resolution. From the 55-second mark onward, the film transitions to unrelated footage appearing to show a demonstration of sewing equipment. The presence of unrelated sewing-equipment footage suggests that the surviving footage may be a composite or reused print, though the available record does not establish how or when the materials came to be combined. As documented in records submitted with the film, contained in this collection under the title DOW-UAP-D102, the footage originally was paired with mountain scenery from Idaho, which is not preserved in this digitization.

Preserved verbatim as source metadata. This wording is separate from Probed’s file-specific description and assessment.

File Context

Related entities

3
Organizations (1)
Topics (1)
Locations (1)
Research Map relationships require row-level claim or timeline references.

Tracker findings

1

The surviving print changes to unrelated footage at 00:55

Official DVIDS metadata states that at 00:55 the digitization changes to unrelated sewing-equipment footage, and the available record does not establish how the materials were combined.

Release provenance

Release
Release 06
Official ID
release-06-file-007-dow-uap-pr159-historical-film-of-reported-ufos-utah-1952
Cleared
Sep 18, 2026
Official release source

Sighting Context

Stored occurrence and enrichment data for this released artifact. Missing or regional data stays explicit rather than being inferred.

Shape model

Shape not classified

No grounded form data

Observation profile

Recorded occurrence details

Occurrence
Tremonton, Utah · July 2, 1952
Location
Tremonton, Utah
Classification
Not classified

Environmental, lunar, orbital, satellite, airport, and nearby-infrastructure context loads when this section approaches the viewport.

Referenced Timeline

  1. DVIDS recorded date

    The official DVIDS page lists 07.02.1952 as the date taken and TREMONTON, UTAH, US as the location.

  2. DVIDS posted date

    The official DVIDS page lists 09.18.2026 07:15 as the posting time for this released media record.

Source Claims

Claims are attributed to the released source and remain distinct from Probed’s assessment and tracker findings.

Source reportedAssertedofficial_dvids_metadata

Official DVIDS metadata identifies the release as a digitization of 16 mm Kodachrome film recorded near Tremonton on 2 July 1952.

This archival footage is a digitization of a 16mm print of Kodachrome color motion-picture film shot on a handheld Bell & Howell Auto Master camera near Tremonton, Utah, on July 2, 1952.

Source reportedUnverifiedofficial_dvids_metadata

Official DVIDS metadata attributes the filming of a group of bright airborne objects to Navy Chief Warrant Officer Delbert C. Newhouse.

U.S. Navy Chief Warrant Officer Delbert C. Newhouse reported observing and filming a group of bright airborne objects and shortly thereafter submitted the footage to the U.S. Air Force.

Source reportedAssertedofficial_dvids_metadata

Official DVIDS metadata says limited detail and the absence of fixed reference points prevented a conclusive resolution.

The film’s limited detail and lack of fixed reference points prevented a conclusive resolution.

Source reportedAssertedofficial_dvids_metadata

Official DVIDS metadata states that at 00:55 the digitization changes to unrelated sewing-equipment footage, and the available record does not establish how the materials were combined.

From the 55-second mark onward, the film transitions to unrelated footage appearing to show a demonstration of sewing equipment.

Source Material & Evidence

video

Official DVIDS media page

DVIDS Video 1023402: DOW-UAP-PR159, Historical Film of Reported UFOs, Utah, 1952

video

Official DVIDS playback file

Official DVIDS direct media file, SHA-256 5654affbd88cf777c4c7b2b73e90d85e312f6e0a4c35fcc8be8a64c75e1b8c33

Research Map

Lines appear only when two entities share a row-level source claim or dated timeline event. Unconnected nodes remain visible without implying a relationship.

Tremonton, UtahDepartment of War · 1 claim + 2 eventsTremonton, UtahUAP · 1 claim + 2 eventsUAPDepartment of War · 1 claim + 2 events