Occurred: 2001-05-29 19:53 Local
Reported: 2001-05-30 00:00 Pacific
Duration: 15 minutes
No of observers: 1

Location: Torrance, CA, USA

Shape: Changing
Characteristics: Aura or haze around object, Left a trail, Changed Colo

I watched what I thought was an exhaust trail in the sky over Torrance as it moved, changed shape and color in the sky

On Tuesday, May 29, I was driving in the South Bay area of Los Angeles county throught the city of Torrance. I had driven east on Sepulveda Blvd and turned north onto Madrona (Prairie Ave), traveling north. As I was passing Del Amo Fashion Mall, I casually glanced up at the sky and saw what I first thought was the exhaust trail of a jet plane. I was going to dismiss it but it looked kind of odd. It was white and kind of short and stubby looking, like the plane had just turned on the exhaust. The shape reminded me of the forked tail of a bird. The thing that was most unusual was that it appeared to be at an angle that looked like the "jet" was diving. This was an angle of about 60 degrees or more from the horizion. It was sighted to my left, northwest of where I was driving. I thought it was somewhere near LAX Airport or over the ocean near the airport. Because of that angle, I began to keep my eye on it because it looked like something that was crash-diving. I thought that it may be a meteor or space junk re-entering the atmosphere but it did not appear to move. The trail did not get any longer and it did not dissapate. It did appear that the two tails were merging into one. At this time I looked at my clock and the time was 7:55 PM PDT. When I noticed that this "exhaust cloud" had not moved I paid closer attention because it did not act like a jet or anything leaving an exhaust trail behind. Then at about 8:00 the exhaust cloud appeared to move! At first I thought it was an optical illusion since I was still driving so I closed my eyes quickly and then looked back at it and it was moving! The whole "cloud" had began to move! What I thought was the leading end (pointing downward) started to arch around, pulling the whole "cloud" with it into a horizontal line! As it moved it began to glow and changed colors from white to a bright orange-white line that then remained stationary in the sky glowing orange-white. At this point I came to a stop light where there were cars ahead of me that cau! sed the view to be obscured. When we started to move again, this "line" was still horizontal to the ground but it also seemed to be lower in the sky than before. Unfortunately as I moved toward Hawthorne CA, the houses and trees were more dense so it was more difficult to see this object. I continued to sight it until I reached the area of Marine Ave and Prairie Ave where it was then obscured by trees and buildings. I stopped at my home for less than 5 minutes and then tried to spot it again as I drove toward the 105 freeway but I could no longer see the object. I don't know how it moved away or if it did but it was no longer visible.

Posted 2001-08-05

© 2023 National UFO Reporting Center. All rights reserved. Use or reproduction within any application without written consent is prohibited.