The Placard of the Roswell Slides: The Final Curtain

Special Rush report from The Roswell Slides Research Group


The Roswell Slides second biggest mystery was the content of the placard on the alleged alien body.

Several statements were made about it, some contradictory:

The Roswell Slides and the Truth by Anthony Bragalia

This ‘placard’ is not very evident in the video grab image. However, it has been enlarged by experts and the writing, in red ink, is handwritten, not typed, as would be found in a biological display in a museum.

http://kevinrandle.blogspot.com/2015/02/the-roswell-slides-update-by-tony.html

Tom Carey was interviewed about the Roswell Slides on the March 22, 2015 episode of Jaime Maussan’s Contacto on Tercer Milenio TV. Carey said that experts have been able to read some words on the placard on the case and that, “debunkers will be disappointed.”

The Conspiracy Show With Richard Syrett Apr 12, 2015

Tom Carey and Don Schmitt were interviewed, of the show's expert presentations, Schmitt said: 

This will be part of the event, part of the program in May, that all of these analytical reports, all of the analyses, all of the main experts as well as the photographic experts who examined- there’s a placard, very fuzzy, that can not be legibly read by the naked eye, yet we’ve had everyone from Dr. David Rudiak, to Studio MacBeth, even the Photo Interpretation Department of the Pentagon, as well as Adobe have all told us that it’s beyond the pale, that it cannot be read, it is totally up to interpretation. 

So, we truly feel we have performed due diligence; we have done everything we can to substantiate and prove what is contained within these slides, whether it is something of a human malady or something truly extraordinary. https://youtu.be/fQyAVrFnTos?t=1h24m2s

During BeWitness, it was announced that despite the work of a number of experts, the placard could absolutely not be read. 

In the second slide the placard was visible, and the writing was evident, if unclear.

News coverage, claiming the placard could not be read,

"We couldn't make anything clearly out of the placard... several others, who did not have much luck." - Adam Dew

"Nobody could read anything decisively in the placard, unfortunately. I am sure people will make attempts to do this going forward...." - Adam Dew

He was right, and most of the placard has now been read.

A member of The Roswell Slides Research Team used a newly acquired source image of the placard seen in front of the body. By manipulating the commercial software, SmartDeblur, he managed to significantly clear up the blurred text. Other members offered suggestions and helped narrow down the actual words.

Nab Lator deblurred the placard image.

Chris Isbert created an animated GIF to display the text.
http://s263.photobucket.com/user/europa73/media/macmini_1_zpsib9x40yc.gif.html

The first line was the most clearly resolved:

MUMMIFIED BODY OF TWO YEAR OLD BOY

There is little doubt that this is the true and correct text. The other 3 lines of the text are somewhat hard to read, some words more clear than others. The original results yielded:

MUMMIFIED BODY OF TWO YEAR OLD BOY

At the time of burial the body was clothed in a xxx-xxx cotton

shirt. Burial wrappings consisted of these small cotton blankets.

Loaned by the Mr. Xxxxxx, San Francisco, California

The entire effort only took hours, quite a difference from the claimed “years” of research that the Slides promoters camp claimed. Because the Slide hucksters haven’t released proper high resolution scans of the slides, our work was made more difficult. We could probably get clearer results from better images.

The mystery of the placard is solved, and so is the nature of the body in the case.

A boy, from Earth. 

The question then, becomes, how was this not discovered by the experts examining the case in the years of investigation?

Subsequent information filled in the missing placard letters. 

Mesa Verde Notes September 1938 Volume VIII, Number 1.

---

MUMMIFIED BODY OF TWO YEAR OLD BOY

At the time of burial the body was clothed in a slip-over cotton 

shirt. Burial wrappings consisted of three small cotton blankets. 

Loaned by Mr. S. L. Palmer, San Francisco, California.

The Roswell Slides Research Group

José Antonio Caravaca, Spain
Isaac Koi, UK
Nab Lator, France
Lance Moody, USA

Tim Printy, USA

Curt Collins, USA

Tim Hebert, USA

Paul Kimball, Canada

Gilles Fernandez, France

Trained Observer, USA

Chris Rutkowski, Canada

Roger Glassel, Sweden

S. Miles Lewis, USA

Thanks to our colleagues and associates, including Alejandro Espino (for the 
Israel Ampuero team, Spain), Philippe Hernandez, Jeff Ritzmann, Aaron J Gulyas, Irna France, Nick Redfern, Fin Handley and many, many more who provided help.

Kevin Randle on Cash-Landrum: A Military Perspective

Kevin Randle on the Cash-Landrum UFO case

As part the discussion of the Cash-Landrum UFO case, we'll be inviting others who have examined the case to share their opinions.

Author  Kevin D. Randle

In Kevin D. Randle's 1998 book, Project Moon Dust: Beyond Roswell-- Exposing The Government's Covert Investigations and Cover-ups, chapter 11 was a ten page analysis, titled, "December 29, 1980: The Cash-Landrum UFO Encounter." Kevin Randle is a retired Lieutenant Colonel, and his service and his experience as a helicopter pilot should aid in the understanding of the military involvement in this case.

Chapter 11: Cash-Landrum UFO Encounter

One resource that Randle had that most others did not, was the file on the case from the Center for UFO Studies. This allowed Randle to note the discrepancy in the account of Betty Cash as to whether she stopped the car's engine or it stopped on its own, apparently due to the proximity of the UFO. This detail was discovered in April 1981 by CUFOS investigator Allan Hendry, but went unmentioned until Randle's book. In Project Moon Dust, he does an excellent job of summarizing the case history based on materials available at the time, and also offers some analysis and commentary, a portion of which appears as the closing remarks for this entry.

Kevin Randle had occasion to discuss the case again in 2011, on his blog, A Different Perspective.

Reprinted here, with the author's kind permission.

Cash Landrum and Crash Retrievals 

SUNDAY, JANUARY 30, 2011

One of the strange things about writing a book is that sometimes the comments or criticisms come in a short period of time.

What do I mean?

My book, Crash: When UFOs Fall from the Sky was published in May and in the last week or ten days I have heard from several people who wished I had included the Cash-Landrum case in the book. That is an interesting case and I believe John Schuessler did a very comprehensive study of it which has been published.

The problem for me is that I don’t view the case as a crash/retrieval. I see it as something that might have been an emergency close approach, or just a close approach without the emergency, or some kind of terrestrially-based test, but not a crash of an extraterrestrial vehicle. For that reason, I left it out.

Cash-Landrum not included

What I know about the case is what everyone else knows and is based on the research of those who studied it in person. I have never spoken to any of those who were originally involved, though I do know John Schuessler. He is one of those who has devoted a great deal of time to the study of UFOs and this case took place almost in his backyard.

It was December 29, 1980, when Betty Cash, Vickie Landrum and Landrum’s seven-year-old grandson, Colby saw the strange object as they returned from dinner. Thinking that it was an airplane heading to a nearby airport, they thought nothing of it. But as they rounded a curve on the rural road, they saw the light approaching them at treetop level.

Fearing that they would be burned alive, Landrum screamed for Cash to stop. The road was narrow and Cash was unable to turn to car so that they could escape. But there was no other traffic, so Cash got out, walking to the front of the vehicle. Landrum also got out but her grandson so upset she got back in.

They could feel heat from the diamond-shaped object that was about 100 feet away. The car became too hot to touch and Landrum put her hand on the dashboard and left an imprint. Cash needed to use part of her leather jacket to protect her hand so that she could open the door.

There was a final blast of heat and the object ascended slowly. As it cleared the treetops, helicopters appeared from all directions. The object and the helicopters then disappeared from sight.

When her eyes adjusted to the darkness, Cash started the car and they began to head home. As they rounded another curve on that same road, they saw the object again, and Cash counted 23 helicopters near it. Landrum thought there were 25 or 26 of them. Cash was able to pull off the road. When the object and the helicopters were again out of sight, Cash then drove home.

Schuessler depiction of the UFO

Later that evening Cash became sick, the symptoms like that of radiation poisoning, at least according to some. She was hospitalized twice for treatment. The Landrums were also sick, but not to the same degree as Cash, which might be as simple as Cash being outside the car longer and her exposure greater.

The case was, of course, investigated. Cash eventually sued the government for 20 million dollars alleging that her illnesses were caused by the close approach of the craft. She was eventually treated for various cancers 25 times and had undergone two operations. The helicopters were obviously US government and they should have been protecting her. The case was dismissed in 1986. Cash died some twenty yeas later.

The suit was dismissed, according to the ruling, because there was no evidence that the diamond-shaped craft was any type of government test vehicle and they were hard pressed to find witnesses to the formation of helicopters. A few witnesses were found who said they had seen the fleet, but no physical evidence or documentation was ever located.

I will point out here, based on my experience as a helicopter pilot, that I find it difficult to believe they could hide an air operation of this magnitude. The helicopters would have had a crew of three and maybe four meaning almost 100 men (and given the date of this, I wouldn’t expect any women in the flight crews), not to mention the logistical support necessary. You’d have to supply a refueling point, as well as other considerations but no trace of any of that was ever found or documented. Something like that, on that scale, would be impossible to hide.

Nearly everyone, skeptics and believers alike, suggest that the illnesses sounded like radiation sickness. One of those who doesn’t is Brad Sparks. He presented a number of reasons including the rapid onset of the symptoms and the lingering nature of them as reason to suspect another cause. Philip Klass was interested in the health of the three victims prior to the encounter.

The bottom line for me, and my book on UFO crashes, is that there is no hint of a crash here. A close encounter of the second kind, meaning a close approach of a UFO, but not a crash. For that reason, I didn’t even consider this case for my book.

POSTED BY KRANDLE AT 3:45 PM

  _ _ _

Kevin Randle's Conclusion

 Lt. Col. Kevin D. Randle. ret.

Randle closes the chapter on the Cash-Landrum story in Project Moon Dust, with a summary of the problems in evaluating the case.

"There is nothing to prove that the three were in perfect health prior to the events and that those events caused an erosion of their health. Betty Cash's cancer may have been a pre-existing condition, though there is no record of it prior to the events. A comprehensive search by military officers and civilian researchers has failed to produce any evidence that the sighting took place.  

Once again we are left with nothing except our beliefs. Was the craft extraterrestrial? Was there any craft at all? Or was it some kind of elaborate hoax invented by the women (though neither has a history of creating practical jokes)? Without more data, we just can't answer any of these questions satisfactorily."

A special thanks to Kevin Randle for permission to reprint his column.

The Weather: Evidence in the Cash-Landrum UFO Case

Weather Data for December 29, 1980

The recent release of Wim van Utrecht's article on how reflections on ice crystals could have resulted in the formation of a "light pillar" ( see: Cash-Landrum Theory & Analysis: Unpublished 2002 Wim van Utrecht Article) spurred discussion over how plausible this optical phenomenon could be in explaining the Cash-Landrum UFO. In the comments section, Tim Printy, author of SUNlite (Skeptical UFO Newsletter) was skeptical that the necessary weather conditions were present to produce the phenomenon.

Wim van Utrecht replied:

"Tim writes "Houston, Texas is not really an area where ice crystals can form except at high elevations". That's right, but the explanation I suggested for the CASH/LANDRUM sighting IS about “Artificial Light Pillars in HIGH Cloud”, not about light pillars forming in ice mist or in ice-crystal layers drifting a couple of hundred meter above the ground. From Table I at http://www.caelestia.be/article01b.html one can deduce that the reflections we are concerned with occur at altitudes roughly between 3 and 7 km (10,000 and 23,000 feet), and naturally halfway between the observer and the light source. We are talking about elongated mirrored images of very bright lights (like the 100 feet high flames that can be seen when gases are burned off at petrochemical plants). Nothing to do with lights illuminating a low cloud deck, but everything with billions of tiny ice-crystals plates tumbling down and forming a gigantic mirror in the sky. Contrary to what I assumed when I first started studying this phenomenon, the reflections can also occur in the Summer (see the aforementioned table). Low latitudes are not a problem either. 

In an earlier mail to Curt, I wrote that the Houston area had a long history of flares at petrochemical plants creating strange lights in the sky (see also note 3 at http://www.caelestia.be/article01a.html). Actually, light pillars in high cloud have been observed over refineries since the early years of oil production. Attached is a PDF file of a couple of observations that were published in the Texas Observers’ Bulletin during the 1930s and 1940s. 

Also from the Houston area is this picture - out of focus, alas - of a series of light pillars photographed from the George Observatory at Houston: http://www.caelestia.be/OP-PH-08.html.

Photo by James BENTON near Houston, Tx, 8:12 pm, 3/29/2003. 

Just to point out that I’m not inventing things here.

Very best regards, Wim"

NOTE: I've uploaded Wim's PDF attachment: Texas Observers’ Bulletin

Tim Printy relied:

"I stand corrected regarding such effects being visible in Houston. I am impressed and feel a bit more confidence in this potential explanation.
Something not addressed is the weather that night. Was it cloudy or clear? It appears to have been an overcast sky based on weather underground. I thought I had read it was cold and clear?"

Weather Data in the Media and Case Documents

While I had previously searched for statements made about the Moon visibility and rain, I had to review the earliest articles and documents for any references to cloud conditions on 12/29/1981. There are only a few:

"(Vickie) Landrum said once home she saturated herself and Colby with baby oil because they both were sunburned about the face and neck. “I thought maybe we’d been chapped by the wind or something because we’d been out most of the day,” she said. “there wasn’t no sun that day. it was real cloudy. it couldn’t have been sunburn from the sun.”The Courier (Conroe Texas) story by Cathy Gordon Feb. 22, 1981

John F. Schuessler: “…the sky was relatively clear and the rain had stopped…”1981 CUFOS Symposium
Narration- not JS quote:

“It was a cold cloudy evening on Dec. 29…”The Houston Chronicle, TX, Sept 25, 1981

John F. Schuessler: “The day of 29 December 1980 had been damp and overcast in Texas.” and "Light from the third-quarter Moon, supplemented an airglow from the lights in the surrounding area, made the sky bright and the visibility good."                              The Unexplained Mysteries of Mind, Space and Time, Vol 9, Issue 107, 1982.  (Later collected in The Age of the UFO, P. Brookesmith, 1984)

LL Walker: “...I looked a little bit closer and you could see some lower lights back off in the distance quite a ways back. I'd say about % of a mile — real good visibility that night...”
MUFON Journal October 1982 (from the 1982 interview)

J. Schuessler: "The weather ranged from clear and hot to cold, damp, windy, and chilly. Houston, Texas air contains a lot of moisture which acts like little crystals that catch all light from the city, moon and cars and reflect it in an airglow manner that leaves the sky very light much of the time. A deep, dark night in the Houston area is unusual. pg 5

"The weather on December 29, 1980 was chilly. The witnesses reported the intermittent misty rain earlier in the day. By evening that had stopped. The clouds were high and broken and the moon was in the third quarter. The air was damp and full of moisture. The airglow of Houston was bright. The conditions were correct for being able to see helicopters flying at night. pg. 6"MUFON Journal September 1983 

John F. Schuessler: “The sky had partially cleared and the moon was visible in the night sky.” and “Because of the light of the moon and the helicopters’ running lights, the craft were clearly visible.”

Fate Magazine, May 1984 (Volume 37, No. 5 Issue 410) Clark Publishing Co. pg 32-36 (Victims of a Close Encounter 

Not entirely harmonious.

What Does the Record show? 

Tim Printy checked for historical weather information in the area for for December 29, 1980:

Houston:

http://www.wunderground.com/history/airport/KHOU/1980/12/29/DailyHistory.html?req_city=NA&req_state=NA&req_statename=NA

  

Time (CST)	Temp.	Windchill	Dew Point	Humidity	Pressure	Visibility	Wind Dir	Wind Speed	Gust Speed	Precip	Events	Conditions
12:00 AM	42.1 °F	-	37.9 °F	85%	30.17 in	10.0 mi	Calm	Calm	-	N/A		Clear
1:00 AM	41.0 °F	-	37.9 °F	89%	30.16 in	7.0 mi	Calm	Calm	-	N/A		Clear
2:00 AM	39.9 °F	-	37.0 °F	89%	30.15 in	7.0 mi	Calm	Calm	-	N/A		Clear
3:00 AM	39.9 °F	-	36.0 °F	86%	30.15 in	7.0 mi	Calm	Calm	-	N/A		Clear
4:00 AM	39.9 °F	-	36.0 °F	86%	30.15 in	7.0 mi	Calm	Calm	-	N/A		Clear
5:00 AM	39.9 °F	36.7 °F	35.1 °F	83%	30.16 in	7.0 mi	NNW	4.6 mph	-	N/A		Clear
6:00 AM	39.0 °F	35.7 °F	34.0 °F	82%	30.16 in	7.0 mi	NNE	4.6 mph	-	N/A		Clear
7:00 AM	39.9 °F	36.7 °F	37.0 °F	89%	30.18 in	7.0 mi	NE	4.6 mph	-	N/A		Scattered Clouds
8:00 AM	43.0 °F	39.5 °F	39.9 °F	89%	30.21 in	5.0 mi	North	5.8 mph	-	N/A	Fog	Fog
9:00 AM	48.9 °F	-	44.1 °F	83%	30.23 in	3.0 mi	North	6.9 mph	-	N/A	Fog	Fog
10:00 AM	55.9 °F	-	44.1 °F	64%	30.25 in	5.0 mi	NNE	3.5 mph	-	N/A		Smoke
11:00 AM	60.1 °F	-	37.9 °F	44%	30.24 in	5.0 mi	Calm	Calm	-	N/A		Smoke
12:00 PM	64.9 °F	-	42.1 °F	43%	30.21 in	6.0 mi	WNW	9.2 mph	-	N/A		Smoke
1:00 PM	66.9 °F	-	39.9 °F	37%	30.17 in	10.0 mi	WNW	13.8 mph	-	N/A		Scattered Clouds
2:00 PM	66.0 °F	-	46.9 °F	50%	30.15 in	10.0 mi	NNW	12.7 mph	-	N/A		Mostly Cloudy
3:00 PM	64.9 °F	-	48.0 °F	54%	30.15 in	10.0 mi	WNW	13.8 mph	-	N/A		Overcast
4:00 PM	64.9 °F	-	48.0 °F	54%	30.15 in	10.0 mi	NNW	15.0 mph	-	N/A		Overcast
5:00 PM	63.0 °F	-	50.0 °F	63%	30.15 in	10.0 mi	WNW	13.8 mph	-	N/A		Overcast
6:00 PM	60.1 °F	-	50.0 °F	69%	30.16 in	10.0 mi	NW	13.8 mph	-	N/A		Overcast
7:00 PM	60.1 °F	-	50.0 °F	69%	30.17 in	10.0 mi	NW	16.1 mph	-	N/A		Overcast
8:00 PM	57.9 °F	-	48.9 °F	72%	30.19 in	10.0 mi	NNW	13.8 mph	-	N/A		Overcast
9:00 PM	57.0 °F	-	48.0 °F	72%	30.21 in	10.0 mi	NW	15.0 mph	-	N/A		Overcast
10:00 PM	55.9 °F	-	42.1 °F	60%	30.23 in	10.0 mi	North	19.6 mph	24.2 mph	N/A		Overcast
11:00 PM	54.0 °F	-	39.0 °F	57%	30.24 in	10.0 mi	North	13.8 mph	-	N/A		Overcast

Galveston:

http://www.wunderground.com/history/airport/KGLS/1980/12/29/DailyHistory.html?req_city=NA&req_state=NA&req_statename=NA

  

Time (CST)	Temp.	Windchill	Dew Point	Humidity	Pressure	Visibility	Wind Dir	Wind Speed	Gust Speed	Precip	Events	Conditions
12:00 AM	53.6 °F	-	42.8 °F	67%	30.16 in	7.0 mi	SE	4.6 mph	-	N/A		Clear
1:00 AM	46.0 °F	-	43.0 °F	89%	30.00 in	6.0 mi	ESE	1.2 mph	-	N/A		Clear
2:00 AM	45.0 °F	-	42.1 °F	90%	30.00 in	6.0 mi	ESE	2.3 mph	-	N/A		Clear
3:00 AM	45.0 °F	-	43.0 °F	93%	30.00 in	6.0 mi	ESE	1.2 mph	-	N/A		Clear
4:00 AM	46.9 °F	-	45.0 °F	93%	30.00 in	6.0 mi	ENE	2.3 mph	-	N/A		Clear
5:00 AM	46.0 °F	-	44.1 °F	93%	30.00 in	6.0 mi	NNE	2.3 mph	-	N/A		Clear
6:00 AM	46.0 °F	43.9 °F	45.0 °F	96%	30.15 in	4.0 mi	North	4.6 mph	-	N/A	Fog	Fog
7:00 AM	46.0 °F	43.9 °F	45.0 °F	96%	30.17 in	4.0 mi	North	4.6 mph	-	N/A	Fog	Fog
8:00 AM	50.0 °F	-	48.0 °F	93%	30.20 in	4.0 mi	NE	5.8 mph	-	N/A	Fog	Fog
9:00 AM	51.1 °F	-	48.9 °F	92%	30.22 in	7.0 mi	NNE	9.2 mph	-	N/A		Overcast
10:00 AM	54.0 °F	-	48.9 °F	83%	30.25 in	7.0 mi	NNE	8.1 mph	-	N/A		Scattered Clouds
11:00 AM	55.0 °F	-	46.9 °F	74%	30.25 in	4.0 mi	North	8.1 mph	-	N/A		Drizzle
12:00 PM	61.0 °F	-	43.0 °F	52%	30.22 in	5.0 mi	NE	6.9 mph	-	N/A		Drizzle
1:00 PM	63.0 °F	-	43.0 °F	48%	30.17 in	5.0 mi	ESE	3.5 mph	-	N/A		Drizzle
2:00 PM	62.1 °F	-	46.9 °F	58%	30.14 in	5.0 mi	SE	6.9 mph	-	N/A		Drizzle
3:00 PM	60.1 °F	-	46.0 °F	60%	30.13 in	5.0 mi	SSE	4.6 mph	-	N/A		Smoke
4:00 PM	57.9 °F	-	48.0 °F	70%	30.00 in	4.0 mi	SSW	5.8 mph	-	N/A		Smoke
6:00 PM	57.0 °F	-	48.9 °F	74%	30.14 in	5.0 mi	West	3.5 mph	-	N/A		Drizzle
7:00 PM	57.0 °F	-	50.0 °F	77%	30.16 in	7.0 mi	WNW	4.6 mph	-	N/A		Overcast
8:00 PM	60.1 °F	-	51.1 °F	72%	30.18 in	7.0 mi	NW	8.1 mph	-	N/A		Overcast
9:00 PM	59.0 °F	-	52.0 °F	78%	30.19 in	7.0 mi	NNW	9.2 mph	-	N/A		Overcast
10:00 PM	57.9 °F	-	48.0 °F	70%	30.21 in	7.0 mi	NNW	17.3 mph	-	N/A		Overcast
11:00 PM	55.0 °F	-	44.1 °F	67%	30.00 in	6.0 mi	North	18.4 mph	-	N/A		Clear

Beaumont:

http://www.wunderground.com/history/airport/KBPT/1980/12/29/DailyHistory.html?req_city=NA&req_state=NA&req_statename=NA

Time (CST)	Temp.	Windchill	Dew Point	Humidity	Pressure	Visibility	Wind Dir	Wind Speed	Gust Speed	Precip	Events	Conditions
12:00 AM	42.1 °F	40.2 °F	39.0 °F	89%	30.18 in	7.0 mi	NNW	3.5 mph	-	N/A		Clear
1:00 AM	39.9 °F	36.7 °F	39.0 °F	97%	30.16 in	7.0 mi	North	4.6 mph	-	N/A		Clear
2:00 AM	39.9 °F	37.8 °F	37.0 °F	89%	30.16 in	7.0 mi	ENE	3.5 mph	-	N/A		Clear
3:00 AM	39.9 °F	37.8 °F	37.0 °F	89%	30.16 in	7.0 mi	ENE	3.5 mph	-	N/A		Clear
4:00 AM	39.0 °F	35.7 °F	37.0 °F	93%	30.16 in	3.0 mi	ENE	4.6 mph	-	N/A	Fog	Fog
5:00 AM	37.9 °F	35.5 °F	36.0 °F	93%	30.16 in	3.0 mi	NE	3.5 mph	-	N/A	Fog	Fog
6:00 AM	37.9 °F	35.5 °F	37.0 °F	97%	30.17 in	5.0 mi	NNE	3.5 mph	-	N/A	Fog	Fog
7:00 AM	36.0 °F	29.6 °F	35.1 °F	97%	30.19 in	3.0 mi	NNW	8.1 mph	-	N/A	Fog	Fog
7:23 AM	-	-	-	N/A%	30.20 in	10.5 mi	North	6.9 mph	-	N/A	Fog	Fog
8:00 AM	37.9 °F	33.5 °F	37.0 °F	97%	30.21 in	10.5 mi	North	5.8 mph	-	N/A	Fog	Fog
8:27 AM	-	-	-	N/A%	30.22 in	3.0 mi	North	5.8 mph	-	N/A	Fog	Fog
9:00 AM	46.9 °F	-	45.0 °F	93%	30.24 in	3.0 mi	North	6.9 mph	-	N/A	Fog	Fog
10:00 AM	53.1 °F	-	45.0 °F	74%	30.24 in	3.0 mi	NNW	5.8 mph	-	N/A	Fog	Fog
12:00 PM	64.0 °F	-	39.9 °F	41%	30.20 in	6.0 mi	North	6.9 mph	-	N/A		Drizzle
1:00 PM	64.9 °F	-	41.0 °F	42%	30.17 in	7.0 mi	NW	8.1 mph	-	N/A		Mostly Cloudy
2:00 PM	-	-	-	N/A%	0.00 in	6.0 mi	NW	57.5 mph	-	N/A		Clear
3:00 PM	66.0 °F	-	42.1 °F	42%	30.12 in	7.0 mi	NW	11.5 mph	-	N/A		Mostly Cloudy
4:00 PM	66.0 °F	-	45.0 °F	47%	30.13 in	7.0 mi	NW	11.5 mph	-	N/A		Mostly Cloudy
5:00 PM	63.0 °F	-	52.0 °F	67%	30.13 in	7.0 mi	NW	11.5 mph	-	N/A		Mostly Cloudy
6:00 PM	61.0 °F	-	52.0 °F	72%	30.14 in	7.0 mi	NW	8.1 mph	-	N/A		Overcast
7:00 PM	59.0 °F	-	52.0 °F	78%	30.15 in	7.0 mi	NW	11.5 mph	-	N/A		Overcast
8:00 PM	57.9 °F	-	32.0 °F	37%	30.17 in	7.0 mi	West	6.9 mph	-	N/A		Overcast
9:00 PM	55.9 °F	-	51.1 °F	84%	30.19 in	7.0 mi	WNW	10.4 mph	-	N/A		Scattered Clouds
10:00 PM	54.0 °F	-	51.1 °F	90%	30.19 in	7.0 mi	NW	10.4 mph	-	N/A		Overcast
11:00 PM	55.0 °F	-	48.0 °F	77%	30.21 in	7.0 mi	North	12.7 mph	-	N/A		Mostly Cloudy

Seeking independent confirmation of Printy's data, I emailed the science operations officer at the NOAA station for the Galveston/Houston area requesting a trustworthy source for historical weather data. His reply:

"The easiest way to get this data is to go to http://www.wunderground.com/ and under the weather tab, select airport weather history. Then, put in your date and airport code (HOU, IAH). I was able to view the decoded hourly obs for both of these sites for your requested date. The hourly data will be at the bottom of the page."

NOAA independently endorsed the source of Printy's data as reliable. After sending Printy the article quotes seen above, Tim replied:

"It seems that, like the moon, nobody has bothered to look into this aspect of the case closely.  I think one can safely say that it was not clear that night and there probably was a significant cloud cover that night."

In an investigation of any kind, one of the first things done is to establish the "scene of the crime". In the case of the Cash-Landrum investigation, several key elements were not well documented: the precise location of the sighting, the position of the Moon, we've seen here, the weather conditions.




NOTE: I'd like to give special thanks to Wim van Utrecht and Tim Printy for their contributions to this discussion.