Sighting in La Haie-Fouassière, July 17, 2025

The witness was alone in the garden of their home, sometime between midnight and 2 a.m., when they noticed many white points of light crossing the sky from the southwest toward the east. According to the witness, the paths changed direction abruptly and unpredictably, the speed varied, some of the lights gave off flashes, and several paths crossed one another. The witness filmed the scene, but the video could not be used because the phenomenon does not appear in it. Since this was the only testimony collected, the GEIPAN could only give the case an average level of consistency.

The investigation concluded that a group of satellites had been observed. Their pinpoint appearance, white color and low brightness match what such satellites normally look like, as does the large number of lights. Their direction of travel, southwest to east, is that of the vast majority of satellites. The time window, from the end of astronomical twilight until low-orbit satellites enter the Earth's shadow, is the best one for seeing many of them. The autokinetic effect, a perceptual phenomenon, can make paths and speeds seem erratic, and probably added to the strangeness the witness felt. The flashes are explained by sunlight reflecting off antennas or solar panels when the geometry is favorable. Finally, with so many satellites visible, two or three of them could appear to come very close or merge without being at the same altitude. The GEIPAN classified the case as B: probable observation of reflections on satellites.