SOUSTONS (40) 13.08.2012

At 05:00 on 13 August 2012, a witness leaving home in Soustons (40) saw a white light pattern moving in cloud. Smaller circles formed a large circle that appeared cyclically and rotated, reversing direction. No sound was heard. He watched for 20 minutes before getting into his vehicle and continued watching while driving. GEIPAN found this suggestive of a light display and referred to a laser-display example. It explains that the upward beam in the example is visible because its observer is near the projector, whereas a distant viewer sees only luminous discs on cloud. Such a display was unsurprising during peak tourist season, even at an early hour when nightclubs remained open. L'Asiana nightclub lay west, in the viewing direction. Full cloud cover of 8/8 favoured such effects; see the weather record. GEIPAN classified the case B: probable light display.