NUFORC UFO Sighting 183172

Occurred: 2024-09-08 21:23 Local
Reported: 2024-09-23 23:05 Pacific
Duration: 2 minutes
No of observers: 1 - Pilot

Location: Oostende, West Flanders, Belgium
Location details: Viewed from W side of Nordman Lake, object was hovering above treeline on opposite shore due NW

Shape: Orb
Color: Orange, Red, Yellow
Estimated Size: 5 foot round
Viewed From: Land
Direction from Viewer: North West
Angle of Elevation: 45
Closest Distance: 100 yards
Estimated Speed: Stationary
Characteristics: Lights on object, Aura or haze around object, Changed Colo

Approx. 5-foot wide orb that was the mixed color of fire encapsulated in glass hovered above rural tree line before disappearing

I was sitting, facing northwest, at a lit firepit near the eastern shore of Norman Lake. My brother and his husband sat with me for a bit. The sky was turning from dusk to night and we were using the app Starwalk to identify the first stars visible. We are visiting from the city, so I was excited to be in a place with little light pollution. The moon phase was a waxing crescent with an illumination of 22.16%, so the low light of the moon made for a darker sky. I was specifically trying to figure out where Venus and Mars would be, but the conversation took over and I forgot about trying to get the answer.

They eventually left and I sat alone out by the fire for some time, until things got completely dark. Staring into the fire, I began to meditate. The lake was visible through the flames a few yards away. As I stared into the flames, I noticed the reflection of Mars in the lake. This pulled me out of my meditation because I was reminded of my unanswered question from earlier. I was shocked at how bright it shone in this dark region.

I looked up at where it would be, only to realize that it wasn't the planet that I was looking at. Sitting completely stationary about 70 feet high in the sky just feet over the treeline, was an orb that was approximately 5 feet wide. It was perfectly round and was shaded in red and bright orange ombre. The middle of the orb had a black dot that was surrounded by a white light. It shimmered like a star would in the atmosphere, but it wasn't far enough away for the atmosphere to have that effect yet.

It stayed stationary for a good minute or two before simply disappearing. It didn't fizzle out, it didn't move, it just ceased to be visible in the sky, like the switch of a light.

I am a professional drone operator with a Parts 106 license. This object was not a drone. There was no sound, and it didn't undulate as it hovered, it stayed completely still and remained stationary in the sky.

The following day I attempted to get to the part in the forest across the lake to see if there was anything or anybody. Since the lake was dammed up last year by an adjacent property, the lake has risen a few feet with rainfall the last year. This has flooded the trails to this portion of the land and can only be accessed from the lake by boat. Once you get to the treeline, it's all bog. The area behind the land is a small nature preserve, and beyond that is farmland. It's rural and there are no airports nearby. Although this was a bog, this orb was not "swamp gas" as it was a solid object that had obvious light emitting from it from an interior source.

After giving it some time to think about it, I realized that I had been staring out into the water for a good 10 minutes or so until the object caught my attention. This means it appeared as it disappeared, instantly.

Posted 2024-09-28