NUFORC Sighting 84742

Occurred: 2011-10-21 22:00 Local
Reported: 2011-10-23 17:20 Pacific
Duration: 5 seconds
No of observers: 3

Location: Maricopa, AZ, USA

Shape: Triangle
Characteristics: Lights on object

Triangle formation of lights followed by single light

Three of us where standing out in the backyard at 10pm watching the sky for shooting stars. I looked up and saw what looked to be 3 points of light forming a perfect triangle in the sky about 50 degrees up from the horizon. The object was moving very fast, I yelled to the other two people by me to look and they also locked into it right away. As I first saw the object I stayed locked onto it and never took my eyes off it. Out of my peripheral vision I noticed a 2nd object dip down in the sky and then back up, it then followed the triangle formation on the exact line of flight in the sky. The 2nd object was only one light and about the same brightness as the triangle formation. It trailed the triangle by about 2 hand widths if you held your had out at arms length.

The triangle consisted of a point of light in the front and flanked on each side by one light. The brightness of these objects was pretty much equal to your average star in the sky. I have witnessed and track satellites with computer software and have also seen the Navys NOSS Satellites pass over before and this was not that. Size of the triangle was equal in width to a penny held out at arms length. I know how fast satellites travel when the pass over and this was these objects were traveling 3 to 4 times that fast if not even faster. They covered about 35 percent of the sky in roughly 5 seconds or less. The sky was clear except for a one small cloud. The objects passed above this cloud and then faded out and we lost visual on them. Also as the triangle formation went across the sky in between the 3 points of light there was kind of a shimmer of very dull light for a brief second. No shape could be observed and as the object traveled through the sky it didn't pass in front ! of bright stars so I can't say if it would visually blocked out the star or if it would seemed transparent. That remains unknown. There was absolutely no sound from either objects even after they had passed from sight. We live in a small town out in the desert and its dead silent out here if was a jet of some sort we would have heard it. We also live in close proximity to the Barry Goldwater Bombing Range so we see our share of military jets pass over but they do not fly as fast as these objects where traveling. I have no idea if this something traveling in our atmosphere or if it was in space. Normal orbit speed in space is roughly 17,500mph and as I said this was 3 to 4 times as fast as that. If it was something in the atmosphere I would have to estimate the speed in excess of 2000mph, there was no sonic boom either.

I consider myself a amateur astronomer and I am also heavy into civilian and military aviation photography. This was nothing like I have seen before. If I had to guess I would say it was some sort of military object that isn't known about yet? All 3 of us where at a loss for words as to what this could have been. I would really like to know if anyone else beside us saw this that night? All 3 of us were glued to the sky for another 1/2hr as we were amazed by this. Nothing more was seen that night.



Posted 2011-10-25

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