Flickering light over Aunay-sur-Odon identified as Venus, 1983

Summary

On the night of 13 April 1983, two drivers stopped to watch a yellow-green light the apparent size of a handball flickering at high altitude. It seemed to oscillate vertically without drifting from its position. Binoculars proved too painful to use because of the light's intensity. The following night, checking the same part of the sky, they found Venus sitting exactly where they had seen the object. Venus's exceptional brightness that evening was concluded to be the cause.