Jesse Marcel
Jesse Marcel | |
|---|---|
Marcel in 1947 | |
| Born | May 27, 1907 Bayou Blue, Louisiana, US |
| Died | June 23, 1986 (aged 79) Houma, Louisiana, US |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Branch | |
| Years of service | 1924–1958 |
| Rank | Lieutenant colonel |
| Battles / wars | |
| Awards | |
Jesse Antoine Marcel Sr. (May 27, 1907 – June 23, 1986) was a major in the United States Air Force (later a lieutenant colonel in the Reserves) who helped administer Operation Crossroads, the 1946 atom bomb tests at the Bikini Atoll.: 39 : i
Marcel was the first military officer tasked with investigating the 1947 Roswell incident, where supposed "flying disc" debris was later identified as pieces of a weather balloon. The incident was largely forgotten until 1978, when Marcel, then a retired lieutenant colonel, told ufologist Stanton Friedman that he believed the Roswell debris was extraterrestrial.