NUFORC Sighting 66279

Occurred: 2008-10-17 10:35 Local
Reported: 2008-10-17 11:47 Pacific
Duration: 15 min,
No of observers: 2

Location: Playa del Rey, CA, USA

Shape: Sphere
Characteristics: Aircraft nearby

Two white spherical objects rotating about each other at low altitude rise until out of sight.

This morning I took my usual midday break (I work from home. NY stock market hours) and decided to go outside and walked out towards LAX which is directly next door to the South. The weather was impeccable approaching 80 degrees and very sunny and crystal clear skies. I crossed the street and went East on a small street that looped behind the local neighborhood HS.

As the barren street curved around back of the school I noticed an LAPD (airport police) car with one officer parked facing the same direction I was now walking (North). I passed him on the sidewalk. Continuing my walk I was looking up and noticed the typical air traffic headed East in the usual daytime flight path for approach to LAX from over the water. Suddenly I see what appear to be two large white spherical helium balloons revolving around each other in a jerky manner that I considered odd since the breeze was about 5mph from the South. They appeared low over the rooftops. I continued to watch the objects and they seemed to stop their Westward movement and began to slowly rise. They appeared to be below 1000 ft. when first spotted because I could clearly see the jet traffic well above it. The object(s) continued slowly rising in the northern sky about 30degrees from zenith still doing this strange revolving movement. I watched them rise until they were at least 30,000 feet because they were well above the air traffic at this time.

About this time the LAPD car which was almost a block behind me decided to move on. As he passed me I pointed to the sky and pointed to what was by now a very small spec in the sky. He eventually found it and then I described what I saw. He looked at me like he didn’t know what to think and I said so long. After he left there was a miltary jet that appeared traveling North over Santa Monica bay at about 20k ft. but it was well under the object at this time.

I continued to watch until it disappeared. I don’t know that the max altitude of a helium balloon is nor have I ever seen one do this.

Posted 2008-10-31