Sighting in Vern-sur-Seiche, September 17, 2012
Ille-et-Vilaine, Bretagne, France
Sighting on September 17, 2012 in Vern-sur-Seiche (Ille-et-Vilaine, France). According to GEIPAN, it was most probably a balloon (class B).
What happened
At about 2:20 pm, a witness noticed a black ball in the sky that seemed motionless and fairly low above the horizon. The witness walked around the object through about a quarter of a circle, which shows it was close and at low altitude.
The investigation noted a north wind of 10 to 20 km/h, considered too light to keep a kite aloft. The spherical shape pointed more towards a balloon. The sky was overcast, which made a solar-heated hot-air balloon test unlikely. GEIPAN concluded that it was probably a festive helium balloon, either held by a string, which would be invisible beyond 100 m, or drifting in the light wind. The case was classified B: probable observation of a 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
- September 17, 2012
- Location
- Vern-sur-Seiche · town centre
- Type of sighting
- From the ground
- Source classification
- B
- Explanation
- Balloons
Sources
- See the original document
GEIPAN (CNES)
n° 2012-09-08333
Summary written by SkyUnknown from the facts published by the source.