Sighting in Clermont-Ferrand, September 19, 1991

Shortly after 5:25 a.m., a resident of Clermont-Ferrand alerted the Cournon-d'Auvergne gendarmerie to a bright point of light in the sky. The gendarme on duty was able to see it too. A second witness, who remained anonymous, phoned the gendarmerie at 5:30 a.m. to report the same phenomenon, and a third call, from the Clermont-Ferrand police station, confirmed it at 5:40 a.m.

The phenomenon was described as a "big star" giving off a strong white light. Its apparent size was nevertheless very small, since it was likened to a point of light. Looking through binoculars revealed no further detail.

The SEPRA had classified the case as C in 1991, and the GEIPAN has since re-examined it. The review found that the description (duration of the sighting, size, colour) matched the planet Venus. Venus was indeed present and very bright in the part of the sky where the witnesses were looking, yet none of them mentioned it. The witnesses' eyesight was not the problem; rather, the way they interpreted what they saw was shaped by surprise, tiredness and the fact that it was night. The case, of low strangeness, is now classified A: a misidentification of Venus.