AURONS (13) 05.06.2015

On Friday 5 June 2015 at about 23:15, a witness and his wife looked from their bathroom window on the north side of their home in Aurons and saw red lights moving slowly and silently eastward in a clear sky. The witness reported the sighting to the gendarmerie; no other account was collected. In its analysis, the source refers to orange balls crossing the sky in a few minutes on a weekend night, although the initial account calls the lights red. GEIPAN considers this strongly suggestive of sky lanterns probably released nearby after a private party. The movement from north to east could be compatible with the very light, variable wind recorded at Salon-de-Provence, about 10 km away, as shown by Météociel. However, the local wind at the precise observation time is unknown, so GEIPAN cannot confirm the lantern hypothesis. It classifies the case as C because photographs and local wind information are lacking.