GISORS (27) 21.07.2013

Around 04:00 on 21 July 2013, a witness in Gisors (27) saw a stationary dark-red light in a cloudy sky. He looked towards Courcelles at azimuth 230°, describing a round red object 4 times the Moon's size at 25° elevation and no visible celestial bodies. The Moon was at azimuth 231° but only 4.6° elevation. GEIPAN favoured the familiar Moon illusion, in which the Moon seems enlarged near rising or setting. Cloud partly hiding its surface details would make recognition difficult. It also noted that unusual sights can be especially surprising after waking in the night. The case was classified B: probable Moon. The large elevation discrepancy prevented class A.