Document · 8 January 1981
GEIPAN case file: Trans-en-Provence, 8 January 1981 (GEPAN Technical Note 16)
GEIPAN's public case file on the Trans-en-Provence landing trace, one of the most thoroughly analysed physical-trace cases on record. The file holds GEPAN Technical Note 16, the gendarmerie statement, weather and army aviation checks, photographs and the reports of the laboratories (INRA and others) that analysed the soil and plants. Our copy is a capture of the case page.
Sources: GEIPAN (CNES), case 1981-01-00849
Facts and claims
- documented GEIPAN's summary: on 8 January 1981 a man working on his property heard a whistling sound and saw a grey, zinc-coloured circular object about 2.5 m across descend, land a few dozen metres away and leave vertically a few seconds later; the whole observation lasted 30 to 40 seconds. He found a trace about 2 m in diameter on the ground. Source: doc-geipan-trans-en-provence-1981.pdf
- documented The gendarmerie came on 9 January, took the witness's statement, recorded the trace and sampled soil and wild alfalfa at increasing distances from it; GEPAN followed on 17 February. Four laboratories found significant soil compaction suggesting a heavy body, slight deposits of iron, iron oxide, phosphates and zinc, possible combustion residues and heating below 600 °C. INRA's biochemical analyses found multiple plant degradations correlated with distance from the trace, of undetermined cause. Source: doc-geipan-trans-en-provence-1981.pdf
- documented GEIPAN concludes that the analyses gave no quantitative estimate of the phenomenon nor proof of the witness's account, which remains single though his credibility is not in doubt, and that an important unusual phenomenon occurred whose origin the inquiry could not determine. It classifies the case D. Source: doc-geipan-trans-en-provence-1981.pdf
Connected files
Organizations
- GEIPAN (CNES, France) (published by)
Incidents
- Trans-en-Provence landing trace (France, 1981) (documents)
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