Pentagon’s new UFO file drop includes audio from 1952 Project Blue Book briefing

( NewsNation ) – The Pentagon’s latest UFO file drop on Friday — its sixth — includes an audio recording and transcript of a Project Blue Book presentation given in March 1952 by U.S. Air Force Capt. Edward J. Ruppelt.

The recording includes confirmation that the Air Force worked with the Battelle Memorial Institute as a contractor on UFO investigations and revealed some details on the Air Force’s cooperation with a 1952 LIFE article that prompted a wave of sightings.

The audio recording is one Rep. Eric Burlison , R-Mo., has been pushing to have released. Previously, he discussed the effort to locate, digitize and declassify the recording with NewsNation’s Ross Coulthart.

Burlison noted the audio was from an Air Force official seeking guidance from MIT scientists about some phenomenon, which he speculated was related to the 1952 sightings in Washington, D.C.

In the recording, Ruppelt discussed sightings from the late 1940s , which he said began with a 1947 sighting by Kenneth Arnold in Idaho. He noted a 1949 report came to several possible conclusions, including a “mild case of mass hysteria” caused by “war nerves,” hoaxes from people who wanted attention or who had psychological issues, or misinterpretations of normal objects.

The captain also noted they dropped some of those conclusions after a review of the report, finding hoaxes were rare. While many sightings were believed to be misinterpretations of normal objects, he noted 20 percent of the sightings were from reliable people, and there were no conclusions to be drawn.

He explained that certain concentrations of sightings, some around U.S. ports as well as around White Sands, a hub for missile testing, like Los Alamos and Camp Hood in Texas. Ruppelt added that while civilian reports tended to spike after publicity about major sightings, military reports continued in times when UFOs were not a topic of larger public attention.

UFO sightings near military installations are phenomena that continue today, with multiple files released during the Pentagon drops documenting reports of unexplained objects near bases.

One type of object called out was disc-shaped objects , which Ruppelt explained as being silent and highly maneuverable.

“But the fact that they’re silent is quite interesting because we have no knowledge of any type of power plant that would be completely silent,” he said.

Ruppelt also identified Battelle Memorial Institute as a contractor used to help determine possible explanations for cases, supplying Air Force investigators with experts.

“So, if we get a case that calls for an astronomer, we can quickly get an astronomer to work on it,” he said.

The institute is alleged to have worked on recovered UFO material for years. In 2009, UFO investigator Anthony Bragalia claimed the institute had possession of “memory metal,” a metal allegedly able to “remember” its original shape, and that was alleged to have come from the 1947 Roswell crash .

While the audio does not confirm any connection between Battelle and Roswell, it confirms the Air Force did have a relationship with the institute and that it was directly involved with UFO investigations.

The audio also discussed a 1952 LIFE article that showcased UFO sightings, which the article said were unexplained. LIFE also quoted an Air Force officer saying the sightings were being taken seriously.

The article sparked an increase in UFO sightings, including the 1952 Washington UFO incident, where hundreds of sightings were reported around the nation’s capital over the course of two weeks.

The audio, captured before the article’s publication, confirms the Air Force did work with LIFE on the article, though it seems they expected it to be less sensational. Specifically, Ruppelt indicated the article would leave out the Mantell incident, where a fighter pilot was killed while allegedly pursuing Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAPs), and an incident where an F-51 pilot allegedly fought a UFO. Both were included.

The sound also confirmed the Air Force gave material that was classified at some point to LIFE for the piece, with the hopes that it would encourage people to help provide information.