NUFORC Sighting 81147

Occurred: 2010-06-15 01:00 Local - Approximate
Reported: 2011-05-06 02:47 Pacific
Duration: 2-3 hours
No of observers: 2

Location: Mount Vernon, WA, USA

Shape: Orb
Characteristics: Lights on object, Left a trail, Changed Colo

Bright lights with flashes, changing direction, color and speed over a very large area of the sky.

I am use to the LEOS (low earth orbit satellites) that can be seen here in the NW, they have a very steady rate of movement and direction. I grew up around the aviation industry and I live on the flight path of the Whidbey Island Navy base, so I am very use to seeing aircraft at night.

I routinely boat at night in a lot of the lakes around North Snohomish, Skagit, and Whatcom counties, on several occasions I and my friend have watched for several hours "lights" moving across the sky that suddenly change color (blues, reds, bright whites, and greens), emit very bright flashes, and make drastic changes in directions. It is the bright flashes that have gotten our attention most of the time and cause us to just lay back for hours and watch them.

These lights are at similar altitude as the LEOS but have flight paths that seem to be very random and course changes as sharp as 90 degrees, zig zags, very tight circles and occasional patterns (box, and spirals). What appear to be contrails on a few occasions, with a few that looked like light more than vapor and extreme changes in speed from stopping to acceleration to speeds that crossed our view of the sky in just seconds.

NUFORC Note:

Witness indicates that the date of the sighting is approximate. PD

Posted 2011-05-12