NUFORC Sighting 97077

Occurred: 1996-06-18 08:26 Local
Reported: 2013-04-11 01:30 Pacific
Duration: 70 seconds
No of observers: 1

Location: San Diego, CA, USA

Shape: Circle
Characteristics: Aura or haze around object, Changed Colo

A brilliant white perfect circle changes to a circle within a circle and then becomes a distant dot in the sky

On or about June 18, 1996 at 8:26AM, while travelling southbound on Interstate 15 (I-15) corridor in greater San Diego, California, and in the vicinity of formerly Naval Air Station, Mira Mar, and now the Marine Corps Air Station, Mira Mar, I saw in the southeastern morning sky a round circular object.

At this time (1996), I lived in North County San Diego and worked for a private, not-for-profit, Institution of Higher Education (post-secondary), which was headquartered on and along Camino Del Rio South parallel to Interstate 8 (I-8).

On regular work days, Monday-Friday, I commuted to and from work using I-15 corridor, and appropriate exits taking me to and away from my office location. I had been using the I-15 corridor since 1991 and became familiar with smaller cities between my residence and place of work along the corridor.

When approaching the vicinity of Mira Mar, my daily routine was to quickly scan the morning skies (while operating my vehicle), and look for Naval fighter jets in the skies practicing ‘touch-and-go’ maneuvers at the Air Station. As memory serves, it was customary for the fighter jets, flight pattern, to circle and approach air strip from the east when landing or touching down.

On the morning of June 18, I was scanning the morning skies but did not notice any ‘human’ craft in the air. I assumed the Air Station had their jets down in hangers conducting maintenance on them. I did however notice what appeared to be a brief glitter in the southeastern sky. At first, I thought it might be the sun but the sun had already risen to higher elevation. Then I thought it might be a commercial aircraft from San Diego International Airport at high altitude and the sun’s rays reflecting off the fuselage of the craft.

It suddenly appeared in the southeastern morning sky. The object was a perfect circle, brilliant white in color but blinding to the eyes. Using my thumb as a gauge and extending my arm out in the direction of the object, it was larger than my thumbnail and perhaps the size of a 25 cent coin (quarter). It didn’t move it hovered as if suspended in the air.

I was driving approximately 65mph, keeping up with the traffic, and flailing my left arm out the window shaking my hand and pointing my fingers upward in the sky hoping other drivers would notice and see the object as well. This is all taking place and happening within seconds, really. I looking up briefly, driving, and trying to get others to look-up as well.

The object changes! What initially appeared as a brilliant white circle, suddenly changed and it became two circles or a circle within a circle. The inner circle was white but it moved like gaseous steam, rolling over and over, and it was surrounded by an outer circle that was clear and translucent. The space between the perimeter of the larger outer circle and the perimeter of the inner circle (the circle within a circle), was transparent and there was something like a heat wave that moved between the perimeters of the circles. It reminded me of heat waves moving across a hot desert floor that can be seen from a distance.

The object begins to move. As quickly as the object appeared, hovered, changed, and reconstituted to its original state, it begins to move southwardly in the morning sky. Within seconds what appeared to be an object the size of a quarter, moved and accelerated its speed and was now a mere white dot dancing in the distance.

The sighting incident happened within seconds, and maybe slightly more than a minute? I honestly do not know how much time elapsed. I do recall looking at my clock radio when I first noticed the object and hence I report the incident occurring at 8:26AM.

There is more … a very unusual dream that happened several days after experiencing the sighting but perhaps that is for a different posting.

Posted 2013-05-15