Area 51 Photos to Be Posted on Web

Photos of Area 51, the super-secret Air Force test site in Nevada that tantalizes UFO and conspiracy buffs, are being posted on the Internet. Aerial Images Inc. of Raleigh, N.C., plans to post five images in collaboration with Microsoft, Kodak, Digital Equipment Corp., Autometric Inc. and the Russian agency Sovinformsputnik. The partners launched a Russian satellite in 1998 to map Earth’s surface and Area 51. An open-skies agreement signed in 1992 by 24 nations, including the United States and Russia, made the effort possible. The Air Force only recently acknowledged that Groom Dry Lake Air Force Base even exists. It is 75 miles northwest of Las Vegas in the rugged Nellis Range. Among UFO aficionados, it is known simply as Area 51, the base’s designation on old Nevada test site maps. Aerial Images, at https://www.terraserver.com, will offer a link to the photos. The Air Force refused to comment on any security concerns about the images.