Sighting in Charvieu-Chavagneux, September 8, 2012

Two witnesses saw two round, red, luminous objects drift slowly and silently across the sky at around 11 p.m. One of them then veered off in a different direction from the first and suddenly vanished. A photo was taken and included in the file.

According to GEIPAN, the description and the photo strongly suggest Thai lanterns: red-orange balls moving slowly for a few minutes. Their path, from south to north or north-west, is consistent with the wind, which was very weak, unstable and mostly from the south. The sighting took place on a Saturday evening, a time when such lanterns are often released. The sudden disappearance is simply explained by the flame going out once the paraffin was used up. The case is classified B: probable sighting of Thai lanterns.