NUFORC Sighting 25576
Occurred: 2002-10-14 19:02 LocalReported: 2002-10-14 19:28 Pacific
Duration: 1 minute
No of observers: 5
Location: Porterville, CA, USA
Shape: Fireball
Characteristics: Aura or haze around object, Left a trail, Aircraft nearby
Fireball above Porterville, California.
As I was driving away from a restaraunt, I saw a bright white fireball rising in the Southwest sky. It left a trail of debris or gas, and my first thought was that it was a missile. It seemed to gain altitude, then disappear, leaving behind a contrail of multicolored gases (orange, blue, white). As I approached my home, a man and his two children were standing at the corner, and I stopped. He said he thought it was a missile test. I've never seen anything like it in my life. The "trail" of gases persisted for approximately 10 minutes after the fireball disappeared. I noted what I believe to be an aircraft in the vicinity of the fireball.
((Vandenberg rocket launch. PD))
Posted 2002-10-15
© 2023 National UFO Reporting Center. All rights reserved. Use or reproduction within any application without written consent is prohibited.