NUFORC Sighting 73779

Occurred: 2009-10-05 00:00 Local
Reported: 2009-12-23 18:05 Pacific
Duration: brief
No of observers: 1

Location: West Palm Beach, FL, USA

Shape: Orb

Possible UFO sighting. Need clarification.

December 23, 2001 To whom it may concern, On or about October 5, 2009 I was outside at night and became interested in taking a photo of the moon through some over-hanging trees. The moon was full or nearly so, the sky was a bit misty, and it looked like it would make an interesting shot. There was a very dim incandescent yellow light behind me.

I was shooting with a digital camera and had the flash off. The camera was set on auto-focus. Because it was dark I couldn’t be certain I had correct focus, and the camera was hand-held so I couldn’t be certain I was holding it still enough to preclude blurring.

I took 6 or 7 shots right in a row, over the course of about a minute, without changing position. I did change the zoom a bit with each shot, blindly attempting to bracket the shots in hopes of getting at least one crisp, focused, and non-blurred image of the leaves.

Sometime later I viewed the pictures on my computer. Only then did I discover that one of the images had a blue orb in it. I did not notice the object while taking the pictures. I was using the LCD monitor at arms’ length for composition; the camera is otherwise a viewfinder that’s difficult to use, especially at low light levels.

I haven’t assumed it was a UFO or a “physical” object. But I am no less curious about it, and wonder if I can have the picture analyzed.

I thought perhaps it was a refraction within the lens. But, again, this orb appears in just one picture and not the others despite the fact all were shot at the same time under exactly the same conditions.

When enlarging the image on my computer there doesn’t seem to be a clear indication that it is the result of refraction. Further, at maximum enlargement, the blue orb seems to have structural depth, though this might be pixel positioning or pixel structure.

Considering the potential, however slight, for actual structural depth, coupled with a little imaginative assumption, I thought it might be a disc traveling perpendicular to the ground.

The object is round, powder blue, and looks like a ball. It looks much like a planet might look if observed through a powerful telescope.

I was shooting more or less straight up and overhead while facing roughly ESE.

I haven’t altered or otherwise fiddled with this image. You’ll notice that there are “holes” in the image, areas where my camera media-card is losing pixels. I was tempted to “fix” these, but decided against it to preserve the image “exactly as it was taken”.

I am e-mailing the picture to you too. Not knowing your parameters I’ll send two copies, one at the original size and the other reduced to “e-mail sizing”.

Thank you

Posted 2010-02-14