Sighting in Le Petit-Quevilly, April 16, 2014

At around 9:30 p.m., from home, the witness saw three bright objects in the sky, between the constellations Boötes and Virgo. They moved along in formation and then vanished. A few seconds later, the witness noticed another phenomenon that looked like an atmospheric re-entry. They estimated the whole sighting lasted between 30 and 50 seconds. No other testimony was collected.

GEIPAN rated the case as moderately strange and of medium consistency: there was only one witness, but the report was precise. The investigation concluded that the witness had mistaken a trio of Chinese military satellites, Yaogan 17 A, B and C, for something unusual. The brightness, appearance, brief visibility caused by a flash, trajectory and timing all fitted this kind of triplet perfectly. The last part of the sighting, which was not very strange, is explained either by a meteor or by the flash of the Iridium 40 satellite, which occurred that evening at that location. The witness's visual perception was not at issue; the interpretation was, since two distinct phenomena that occurred almost together were linked. The case is classified A.