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Sighting in Rentree Atmospherique — (reg) Occitanie, January 25, 2008

France

Sighting on January 25, 2008 in Rentree Atmospherique — (reg) Occitanie (France). According to GEIPAN, it was most probably the atmospheric re-entry of a space object (rocket stage, debris) (class B).

What happened

Around 6:15 p.m., a great many witnesses, mostly in south-western France, saw a luminous object cross the sky. The GEIPAN collected more than 170 accounts, which made it possible to reconstruct a trajectory and to locate a probable impact point east of Albi.

The investigation could not confirm that the event was the atmospheric re-entry of a piece of space debris. The explanation adopted was that of a bolide entering the atmosphere. Several witnesses brought the GEIPAN stones they had found after the sighting, but no fragment of the meteorite was ever recovered. The case was classified B: probably identified, as the atmospheric re-entry of a bolide.

Account rewritten by SkyUnknown from the investigation report published by GEIPAN (CNES). The original text and case documents are on the official record.

Date
January 25, 2008
Location
Rentree Atmospherique — (reg) Occitanie · town centre
Type of sighting
From the ground
Source classification
B
Explanation
Re-entries

Sources

Summary written by SkyUnknown from the facts published by the source.