Sighting in Blanquefort, October 30, 2011
Gironde, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, France
Sighting on October 30, 2011 in Blanquefort (Gironde, France). According to GEIPAN, it was most probably a balloon (class B).
What happened
Between 3:10 and 3:20 p.m., a witness noticed a twinkling point of light in the sky. The object seemed to be stationary, or else moving very slowly. The witness heard no noise at any point during the observation and took photographs of the object.
The investigation noted that the photos suggest a balloon, similar to the radiosonde balloons that Météo-France releases several times a day across metropolitan France. In particular, a weather balloon is launched every day from Bordeaux-Mérignac at around 12:00 UTC, which was 2:00 p.m. local time that day. It is therefore highly likely that the witness saw one of these balloons. GEIPAN classified the case as B (probably identified), with a weather balloon as the probable cause.
Account rewritten by SkyUnknown from the investigation report published by GEIPAN (CNES). The original text and case documents are on the official record.
- Date
- October 30, 2011
- Location
- Blanquefort · town centre
- Type of sighting
- From the ground
- Source classification
- B
- Explanation
- Balloons
Sources
- See the original document
GEIPAN (CNES)
n° 2011-10-02837
Summary written by SkyUnknown from the facts published by the source.