What UFOs turn out to be

Planets mistaken for UFOs (Venus, Jupiter)

After the Moon, Venus is the brightest object in the night sky. Low on the horizon at dusk or dawn, it twinkles, shifts colour through the layers of air and seems to "follow" a driver, like any very distant object. Jupiter, and sometimes Mars, create the same effects.

A light that has stayed put for more than half an hour, slowly moving with the rest of the sky and disappearing as it sets, is almost always a planet. Planetarium software can confirm it for any date and place.

SkyUnknown lists 109 UFO sightings explained as a planet, from 1953 to 2026, drawn from official records: GEIPAN (CNES). The busiest year was 2010, with 13 cases.

Most frequently named places: Marseille (2), Saint-Jorioz (2), Cannes (2), and Clermont-Ferrand (2).