NUFORC Sighting 135213

Occurred: 2017-07-16 21:45 Local - Approximate
Reported: 2017-07-17 14:42 Pacific
Duration: 5 minutes
No of observers: 1

Location: Milwaukee, WI, USA

Shape: Light


Given that local weather forecasts mentioned that the Aurora Borealis could be viewed in my area from around 10 PM, I went outside to see if they were, indeed, visible in Milwaukee. Unfortunately, they weren't.

However, while scanning the night sky around 9:45 PM, I noticed a light directly overhead. At first, I thought it was a satellite moving quietly, steadily due north. But then I saw it was blinking on-and-off in one second intervals. No navigation lights were evident, and the light was not the strobe of a high-flying aircraft. In fact, two such high-flying jets (headed west) crossed well in front of this object, so it was easy to discern and compare what a strobe looked like at altitude vis-a-vis the unknown object.

In terms of illumination, the object/light resembled Saturn in both brightness and magnitude, although the quality of its light was a steady pale white while lit. There light definitely wasn't a flash like that of a strobe, and it wasn't like the brilliant reflected light of a planet like Jupiter or Saturn. It had no star-like characteristics, either.

Unlike transient satellite flashes, the pulsing remained constant throughout the sighting. And, unlike a satellite, the object appeared to stop about 30 degrees above the horizon for 15-20 seconds, before heading off in a more northwest direction (a deviation under 10 degrees). It pulsed steadily until it disappeared from view. No navigation lights were ever in evidence; no contrail; no sound; no silhouette visible against the sky.

The sighting lasted about five minutes.




NUFORC Note:

For some reason, witness indicates that the date of the sighting is approximate. PD


Posted 2017-07-23

© 2023 National UFO Reporting Center. All rights reserved. Use or reproduction within any application without written consent is prohibited.