Sighting in Paris, May 13, 2011
Île-de-France, France
Sighting on May 13, 2011, exact location not given (département: Paris, France). According to GEIPAN, it was most probably a sky lantern (class B).
What happened
Shortly before one o'clock in the morning, several people noticed lights in the sky. One of the witnesses described seven very bright orange balls moving about, following circular and irregular paths.
The investigation found that this description matched Thai lanterns in colour, number and altitude. The erratic movements may seem surprising, but in a city there are many sources of local air turbulence: road traffic, building ventilation systems, heating and air conditioning. Other accounts also describe lanterns drifting in a disorderly way above urban areas. Releasing such lanterns is banned in cities, but the ban is not always observed, possibly because those releasing them are unaware of it.
GEIPAN therefore classified the case as B: probably Thai lanterns.
Account rewritten by SkyUnknown from the investigation report published by GEIPAN (CNES). The original text and case documents are on the official record.
- Date
- May 13, 2011
- Location
- Paris · region only
- Type of sighting
- From the ground
- Source classification
- B
- Explanation
- Sky lanterns
Sources
- See the original document
GEIPAN (CNES)
n° 2011-05-02756
Summary written by SkyUnknown from the facts published by the source.