NUFORC Sighting 179785

Occurred: 2020-08-16 04:15 Local
Reported: 2024-01-05 19:49 Pacific
Duration: 4 hours
No of observers: 4

Location: Camp Wood, TX, USA
Location details: Above the elementary school

Shape: Orb
Color: White blaze
Estimated Size: 6 ft
Viewed From: Land
Direction from Viewer: NE
Angle of Elevation: 17
Closest Distance: 500yds
Characteristics: Aura or haze around object

Blazing orb hovering above elementary school

Me and three others sat outside by the fire and witnessed a blazing orb that appeared to be hovering over the elementary school. It seemed to be hovering pretty low, around 200–250 feet up. It would get extremely bright, replacing the moonlight, then almost completely dark. My friends stayed in the middle of the road, watching as I rode my bike closer to get below it. For them, it appeared to stay above the school; for me, it appeared to move further away, so I tried to go around it. Our town is only 1 mile across, so I went to the side of town, and it appeared to be above the school, as if I were rotating around the object. I called my friends, who stated it had not moved and seemed to still be above the school, so again, I went "under" it. My friends began to call me in a panic, saying it was right above me, only 100–150 feet off the ground, but as I looked up, it was nowhere near me and managed to appear over the mountains to our north. I then returned to them to see an online star map and to rule out possibilities. It wasn't a star or planet; no launches had occurred near that area or around that time. We recorded it separately on three phones to rule out frame rate focusing and any artifacts that may occur. All three phones showed the same patterns and likeness. After around 2 hours, it disappeared, and then about 20 minutes later, it reappeared, this time to the west over what seemed like my home. It then got very bright again before disappearing completely as the sun was rising. Note: I was 17; two friends were 16; and one was 18.

Posted 2024-02-15