Sighting in Avignon, December 24, 1981

On two consecutive evenings, between about 6:30 and 7:00 pm, several people noticed an unusual luminous phenomenon in a cloudy sky. It was circular, and its color changed several times, going from white to orange. It was stationary at first, then seems to have moved, which would explain why it appeared larger at times and smaller at others.

On the second evening, pilots and air traffic controllers also saw the glow. The gendarmerie carried out a thorough investigation with various services, and a check was made using astronomy software. Even so, there was not enough information to say that the witnesses had seen Venus, which was particularly visible that evening. Because the data were insufficient, the GEIPAN classified the case as C: the observation of a luminous disk changing in shape and color.