Fontevraud-l'Abbaye, yellowish sphere identified as Venus

Summary

In March 1980, several military personnel in Maine-et-Loire watched a yellowish sphere larger than a star emitting intense rays of light for about an hour. It was seen to the west, slightly above the horizon, though no precise angular measurement was taken. Star-chart analysis showed Venus occupied exactly that position at roughly 11° elevation with a magnitude of –4.22. Sirius was also visible at magnitude –1.45, but the described characteristics matched Venus far more closely.