NUFORC Sighting 60253

Occurred: 2007-12-08 21:12 Local
Reported: 2007-12-09 16:46 Pacific
Duration: 7 seconds
No of observers: 2

Location: Salem, OR, USA

Shape: Light

Two Parallel Lights Moving At Very High Speed Along An Unusual Path

It was a clear, cold evening in Salem, OR. The temperature was about 36 degrees, perhaps two degrees above the dew point.

My wife and I were in our spa. It is situated where two legs of our house (an “L” shape) join such that we have a clear view towards the north and east. Some trees block a horizon view to the east, and the house blocks the view to the southwest. There is considerable ambient light.

At 2112 (PST) I noticed two lights moving from the northeast to the southwest. They were moving parallel to each other, being apart about the same distance as two of the stars in the Big Dipper handle, and half as bright as Mars. [I think it was Mars I was seeing in the northeast sky.] I said to my wife, “Look at that!” They passed right over the top of us, just after which my wife located them. When they disappeared two seconds later, she said, “What was that?” They moved fast and in straight lines. About seven seconds elapsed between the times I first saw them above the trees until they disappeared behind my roof. All I could see were lights, and the lights never varied until they were almost gone. No noise was heard, although the damned low-speed spa pump was on at the time.

It was too late to see satellites. Had they been aircraft they would most certainly have been heard (a sonic boom, no doubt). Since the light was either generated by the objects or reflected, in my mind the only “reasonable” explanation is they were birds. However… These two “birds” had to be low (considering their speed) and expert fliers (to perfectly maintain their wide spacing). They must have had bright underbodies to reflect the light. City light varies, hence reflection varies, but their brightness didn’t vary. I sense they weren’t that low, hence the perception of significant speed.

Posted 2008-03-04