Sighting in Trouville-sur-Mer, April 16, 2024

Shortly after five in the morning, the witness was at home, in a dwelling facing the sea toward the northwest. They noticed a luminous phenomenon moving, apparently from west to east, just above the horizon. Its speed seemed very high. After about fifteen seconds it vanished abruptly. The witness was alone and took no photo or video, so GEIPAN rated the consistency of the case as medium.

The investigation favoured the explanation of a searchlight reflected on the cloud base, a sky-tracer. The round, luminous shape, the yellow colour, the low horizontal path and the very high speed all fit this explanation, as does the short duration, which is possible if the searchlight was pointed skyward by chance. Low cloud was confirmed to be present. No beam was seen, which is explained by a very low elevation, a short observation and exceptional horizontal visibility, the atmosphere being unusually free of particles. Calculations point to the searchlight probably being used from a boat offshore, although the searches could not pinpoint its origin. The case is classified B: probable sighting of a sky-tracer.