Sighting in Nice, August 21, 2013
Alpes-Maritimes, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France
Sighting on August 21, 2013 in Nice (Alpes-Maritimes, France). According to GEIPAN, it was most probably a balloon (class B).
What happened
A person out walking noticed a very bright light in a clear sky above the sea, at 9:46 a.m. It made no sound. Its brightness then dropped gradually until it vanished. The sighting lasted between 20 and 25 minutes. No other witness to the phenomenon was found.
The Sun was at an azimuth of 104° and an elevation of 32°. A steady north-westerly wind was blowing at 19 to 28 km/h, and the sky was clear.
According to GEIPAN, an almost motionless point of light watched for around twenty minutes strongly suggests a high-altitude balloon. This hypothesis could not be verified, although it fits the description well. There is no regular release of weather balloons from Nice or its surroundings, but several scientific institutes may launch them in south-eastern France or in Italy. Modelling the path of a high-altitude balloon is also very difficult, because winds at that height are often very strong and differ from those at ground level. The case is classified B: it was probably a weather balloon.
Account rewritten by SkyUnknown from the investigation report published by GEIPAN (CNES). The original text and case documents are on the official record.
- Date
- August 21, 2013
- Location
- Nice · town centre
- Type of sighting
- From the ground
- Source classification
- B
- Explanation
- Balloons
Sources
- See the original document
GEIPAN (CNES)
n° 2013-08-08533
Summary written by SkyUnknown from the facts published by the source.