Reddish light over Sommauthe reclassified as Venus, 1983

Summary

One night in April 1983, a farmer in Sommauthe noticed a reddish light and went outside to investigate. He found a luminous ball above Saint-Pierremont, displaying rapid movements and radiations that also caught the attention of a neighbour and the gendarmerie. After about an hour the phenomenon vanished abruptly. Originally classified D, GEIPAN later re-examined the case. The object's position, colour, and behaviour matched Venus at low elevation; colour fluctuations were attributable to atmospheric turbulence and perceptual error, and the sudden disappearance to obstruction by trees or clouds. The case was reclassified as a Venus observation.