THE REAL ROSWELL

National Geographic Channel - Original Air Date: 2007

This is a very good show about the Roswell incident and the myths that have been built up around it since. It starts by explaining the sequence of events as they were reported, gives background on the era of the crash, relates the history of UFO sightings, and details the Roswell story as believed by many UFOlogists. Then the show looks at the facts and draws a very skeptical conclusion -- a conclusion which, frankly, the facts seem to support. Standout on this show is the repeated use of eyewitness testimony and records. They have the son of the Air Force officer who recovered the object, and tapes of the father as well. They also have news reports and witness reports from the time. Plus, they have at least one scientist from the top-secret Project Mogul. Also, this is the first show I remember that mentioned Behind the Flying Saucers, by Frank Scully, a "true" story (later revealed to be a hoax) that seems a likely source for many Roswell myths -- most of which only appeared 30+ years after the actual incident. The conclusion the show reaches is that Roswell actually featured the crash of a top secret -- and very unusual -- balloon array from Project Mogul, and not a UFO crash.