Sighting in Albias, January 17, 2009
Tarn-et-Garonne, Occitanie, France
Sighting on January 17, 2009 in Albias (Tarn-et-Garonne, France). GEIPAN identified the phenomenon with certainty: it was the Moon (class A).
What happened
A witness reported two phenomena they could not explain, both seen during the same night.
The first was seen at around 12:30 a.m. local time. The witness described it as an orange half-circle sitting on the horizon. The investigation showed that at that moment the Moon was indeed in that part of the sky, to the east, at 60% illumination and in a waning gibbous phase. This first sighting therefore most likely corresponds to the Moon.
The second phenomenon, unrelated to the first, was observed at 1:23 a.m. local time. Its characteristics suggest a sky lantern.
The GEIPAN classified the case as A: the observation of the Moon and, very probably, of a sky lantern.
Account rewritten by SkyUnknown from the investigation report published by GEIPAN (CNES). The original text and case documents are on the official record.
- Date
- January 17, 2009
- Location
- Albias · town centre
- Type of sighting
- From the ground
- Source classification
- A
- Explanation
- Moon
Sources
- See the original document
GEIPAN (CNES)
n° 2009-01-02730
Summary written by SkyUnknown from the facts published by the source.