PERLES-ET-CASTELET (09) 19.07.2014

On 19 July 2014 at 23:00, a group watched the stars in the mountains at Perles-et-Castelet. The only person to submit an account described a point of light following a hesitant path, then other points moving strangely. Some appeared to meet and merge. Accounts from the other observers could not be obtained. GEIPAN bases its explanation on 7 reported features: all the UAPs appeared point-like; they were predominantly white; their paths were straight; they disappeared and reappeared slightly farther along their paths; they also moved erratically along tight curves; they accelerated over short distances; and they stopped abruptly. GEIPAN considers the first 4 features typical of satellites seen at night. Conditions were ideal for seeing many: no Moon, high altitude, little or no light pollution and a summer sky. The time also matters: most satellites are visible early at night or in the early morning, while sunlight still reaches them and they remain outside Earth's shadow. GEIPAN attributes the final 3 features to small physiological eye movements, termed “micro-nystagmus” in the source, which can occur when staring at objects, particularly at night. These can create a false impression of small anomalous motions by points of light, including zigzags or brief stops by moving objects. The source directs readers to a detailed physiological explanation midway down a page on forum-ovni-ufologie. According to this explanation, the effect is particularly noticeable when a moving UAP crosses other points of light. Faced with new light sources, the eye tries to optimize night vision by concentrating on them. The muscles controlling eye movement rapidly shift the retina's central area, the fovea, alternately onto and beside the light sources. The brain then misinterprets the signals reaching it through the optic nerve as zigzags or stops. GEIPAN classifies the case B: probable satellites, with the erratic movements attributed to this visual illusion.