Sighting in Nîmes, January 5, 1984

At about 2:30 a.m., two witnesses were travelling at night in a VSL vehicle on the A9 motorway toward Montpellier. They noticed a phenomenon (called PAN 1) that appeared to follow them along the motorway for roughly twenty kilometres. No particular noise was heard during the observations. A second phenomenon (PAN 2) was seen only by the second witness, who was very frightened.

The GEIPAN re-examined the case, which had previously been classified D. According to the investigation, the characteristics and behaviour of PAN 1, as the two witnesses described them, match no known phenomenon. However, almost all the elements of the accounts, drawings included, differ on its appearance and behaviour. The information is too sparse and too poor in quality to allow further checks or cross-referencing, so it can neither explain the phenomenon nor confirm that it is unexplained. The GEIPAN therefore classified PAN 1 as C, for lack of reliable information.

PAN 2 was a misidentification of the star Aldebaran, seen in a geographic configuration that was temporarily favourable. The impression of being followed was partly due to the witness's own movement: the very distant star stayed in a fixed direction while the road changed orientation, creating the illusion that it was accompanying the vehicle. PAN 2 is classified A.