GUIPEL (35) 13.01.1978

Summary

A couple in France observed a slow-moving rectangular luminous object with an orange-red color on January 13, 1978. The witnesses noted the presence of a halo on the object's long sides and reported no sound or ground traces. Despite the consistency of the account, investigators concluded it was a solar column, an optical phenomenon related to the Sun. That day, the Sun had just set along the direction indicated by the witnesses, making such a phenomenon more likely. The explanation points to a misinterpretation by the witnesses, who assumed they were seeing something unusual due to its rarity. The case is classified as PAN A, indicating a low strangeness observation linked to a misidentification with a natural phenomenon.