The Barra da Tijuca Photographs
Two magazine journalists said they saw a flying disc over a Rio beach, and published five photographs of it.
What was reported
In May 1952, João Martins, a reporter for the popular Brazilian magazine O Cruzeiro, and photographer Ed Keffel said they saw a disc-shaped object fly over Barra da Tijuca, then a quiet stretch of coast outside Rio de Janeiro. Keffel said he took five photographs in about a minute.
O Cruzeiro published the pictures, which sold out the issue and became the most famous UFO photos in Brazil.
Explanations offered
Analysts soon pointed out that the light and shadows on the disc didn't match the shadows on the ground below. Later studies of the photographs concluded they were faked, probably using a model, and many Brazilian researchers now consider the case a hoax.
- When
- May 1952
- Where
- Barra da Tijuca, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
- Witnesses
- A journalist and a photographer from O Cruzeiro magazine
- Status
- Probably a hoax
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.