Occurred: 2005-09-14 05:50 Local
Reported: 2005-10-16 09:08 Pacific
Duration: 5-7 Seconds
No of observers: 0

Location: Various counties, IA, USA

Shape: Fireball
Characteristics: Aura or haze around object, Left a trail

Fireball/greenish light seen from various Iowa locations by many witnesses & reported to radio show

Iowa MUFON State Director, Beverly Trout, interviewed 13 witnesses as a result of a sighting on 9/14/05 when a popular Des Moines radio show rec'd many calls around 5:50 a.m. (from various Iowa locations) reporting a huge light moving east to west, and being seen by most witnesses as they looked west (one witness located a bit SE of Des Moines saw it move 90 degrees overhead as it moved E to W and reported a possible "rolling smoke" trail, or haze - with two (2) other witnesses saying there might have been a slight haziness associated with the light/object, and 3 describing light as a bit elongated).

Most described light as greenish, but sometimes whitish, sometimes with reddish tinge. Speed was described as fast, but NOT as fast as a meteor. No sound.

Calls came from witnesses in the Eastern, Central, South Central, Northern, Northwestern, and Western parts of Iowa, all looking to the west EXCEPT a trucker who says the light descended to about 300 feet over a field to the right of the vehicle, and no more than 1/4 mile distant, where the light then went out, and was seen no more by the driver. [[It should be noted that SOME of the witnesses could NOT have been seeing the same thing as the driver by looking west, because of their location - assuming, of course, that the driver was fairly accurate in perceiving a close-up approach of the light.]]

ALL WITNESSES MAINTAIN THAT THE LIGHT/OBJECT DID NOT DIMINISH IN SIZE as it sped from E to W.

Questions that arise: Was it a meteor? Was it space junk? Was it only one event? Or in the case of the truck driver's adamant description, is it possible that there were two (2) events in progress? Or was it only one event, with a temporary change in altitude, speed, etc., with the light then proceeding on its westerly way unobserved by the truck driver?

Results of the investigation are interesting, but obviously open-ended. Many calls came in to the radio show the following morning looking for answers, and Bev Trout again was interviewed on results of the investigation.

[It should be noted that NUFORC's Iowa Database lists a 9/14/05 event at about 6:00 a.m., which sounds as if it might be the same event(s) as described above.]




NUFORC Note:

We express our gratitude to Beverly Trout for sharing the results of her findings about this incident. IOWA/MUFON can be reached at the following address: . PD


Posted 2005-10-20

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