Editing 1947 flying disc craze (section)

====Potential explanations offered====
{{Flying disc craze of 1947 map of reports - Jun 29}}
Lt. Col. Harold R. Turner of the [[White Sands Proving Ground]] publicly initially speculated the discs "must have been" jet airplanes but later told press that the New Mexico flying disc reports were the result of meteorites.<ref name="auto4"/><ref name="auto40">{{Cite web|url=http://www.newspapers.com/image/10286931/|title=29 Jun 1947, Page 1 - The Mexia Daily News at Newspapers.com|website=Newspapers.com}}</ref>  On June 28, Washington-based ironworks operator Ray Taro speculated that the "flying discs" were caused by his foundry, which had been melting bottlecaps, expelling "little aluminum discs" which were blown out of the foundry smoke stacks.<ref name="auto54">Spartanburg Herald, South Carolina - 28 Jun 47</ref><ref name="auto44">{{Cite web|url=http://www.newspapers.com/image/138615089/|title=29 Jun 1947, Page 1 - St. Louis Post-Dispatch at Newspapers.com|website=Newspapers.com}}</ref>  On June 28, Oklahoma sightings were revealed as handbills released from an airplane.<ref name="auto55">{{Cite web|url=http://www.newspapers.com/image/774335922/|title=29 Jun 1947, 17 - Wichita Falls Times at Newspapers.com|website=Newspapers.com}}</ref>
[[File:COL Harold Turner.jpg|thumb|right|Col. Harold R. Turner, commander of the White Sands Proving Ground, speculated the reports were caused by rockets or meteors.]]

By June 29, one source reported that "These discs, some people suggest, may presage an invasion from Mars."<ref name="feof6">{{Cite web|url=http://www.newspapers.com/image/503032645/|title=29 Jun 1947, 12 - Carlsbad Current-Argus at Newspapers.com|website=Newspapers.com}}</ref>  Others suggested the discs were Russian weapons, akin to the [[Fu-Go balloon bomb|incendiary balloons released by the Japanese]] to cross the Pacific and explode in the US.<ref name="auto6"/><ref name="auto9">{{Cite web|url=http://www.newspapers.com/image/210766243/|title=6 Jul 1947, Page 30 - The Times at Newspapers.com|website=Newspapers.com}}</ref><ref name="auto10">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TQ3BBAAAQBAJ|title=Mirage Men: A Journey into Disinformation, Paranoia and UFOs.|first=Mark|last=Pilkington|date=July 29, 2010|publisher=Little, Brown Book Group|isbn=9781849012409 |via=Google Books}}</ref>  Speculation suggested that the Navy's experimental [[Flying Flapjack]] might be responsible for disc sightings.<ref name="auto11">{{Cite web|url=http://www.newspapers.com/image/797769397/|title=30 Jun 1947, 1 - El Paso Herald-Post at Newspapers.com|website=Newspapers.com}}</ref>  On June 30, one Oregon preacher suggested that the discs were "the 'advance guard' of universal disaster, heralding the end of the world".<ref name="auto3">{{Cite web|url=http://www.newspapers.com/image/628197575/|title=1 Jul 1947, 4 - Lodi News-Sentinel at Newspapers.com|website=Newspapers.com}}</ref>

On July 1, Air Force intelligence officer Col. [[Alfred Kalberer]] and astronomer [[Oscar Monnig]] briefed press to provide reassurance that "we're not being invaded by little platter-like planes from Mars".<ref name="JulKalberer" >{{Cite web|url=http://www.newspapers.com/image/636946287/|title=1 Jul 1947, 6 - Fort Worth Star-Telegram at Newspapers.com|website=Newspapers.com}}</ref>  Monnig described the sightings as "an interesting study in human psychology", arguing that after upon hearing Arnold's initial report, a colleague laughed and predicted "Watch the reports pour in now, from all across the country, from people who will imagine they have seen these things, too".<ref name="JulKalberer" />  Kalberer cited the [[Orson Welles]] broadcast and the [[May 1947 Tokyo Sea Monster broadcast]].<ref name="JulKalberer" /> Kalberer joked that he wished "someone would [[Salting a bird's tail|put salt on the tail]] of one of these discs and catch it like our grandmothers used to tell us to do if we wished to catch a bird",  adding "They're such friendly little discs.  They seem to flip around and do all sorts of kittenish antics".<ref name="JulKalberer" />

Also on July 1, headlines like "Flying Disc Deal 'Solved'" reported that a flying disc had been recovered in New Mexico after a local man chased the object until it landed.  The object was identified as a "five by eight inch piece of tinfoil".<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.newspapers.com/image/79807919/|title=1 Jul 1947, Page 2 - The Post-Register at Newspapers.com|website=Newspapers.com}}</ref>  In San Angelo, on July 2 the press relayed a report from Ivy T. Young who speculated that his hobby of releasing silvery balloons with his name attached may have been responsible for the disc sightings.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.newspapers.com/image/781616993/|title=2 Jul 1947, 1 - San Angelo Standard-Times at Newspapers.com|website=Newspapers.com}}</ref>