Sighting in Chevreuse, December 25, 1980
Yvelines, Île-de-France, France
Sighting on December 25, 1980 in Chevreuse (Yvelines, France). GEIPAN identified the phenomenon with certainty: it was the atmospheric re-entry of a space object (rocket stage, debris) (class A).
What happened
Witnesses saw points of light moving from south to north. The available case summary gives no time, duration, number of witnesses, shape, colour or apparent size for the lights, and no weather conditions.
The file was among the older cases originally classed as "C" (insufficient data). GEIPAN reexamined it using new technical tools, including software, and the investigative experience gained since then. The review led to a change of classification: the sightings match the atmospheric re-entry of the Cosmos 749 rocket, which the witnesses mistook for something else. The case is classed A, meaning identified.
Account rewritten by SkyUnknown from the investigation report published by GEIPAN (CNES). The original text and case documents are on the official record.
- Date
- December 25, 1980
- Location
- Chevreuse · town centre
- Type of sighting
- From the ground
- Source classification
- A
- Explanation
- Re-entries
Sources
- See the original document
GEIPAN (CNES)
n° 1980-12-00843
Summary written by SkyUnknown from the facts published by the source.