BALMA (31) 03.08.2016

On 3 August 2016 at 23:06, a witness and his partner saw two sunflower-yellow luminous objects move slowly and silently, one after the other, toward the south. One observer photographed them. Before going out, they dwindled to red points. The image intrigued them when transferred to a computer. Only one account was collected. GEIPAN distinguishes the initial visual anomaly from the still stronger photographic one. The direct observation fits sky lanterns: colour, summer-evening timing, a possibly cylindrical shape like a “shinbone,” the final extinction pattern and a path consistent with wind from 300°, while the witness placed their arrival at 330°. The luminous tendrils around the UAP in the photograph are an artifact. The camera was left on automatic, flash on, with a 1-second exposure. The flash fired immediately and stopped once enough light had reached the darker scene elements, tree branches. The shutter nevertheless remained open for the full second, recording the brighter lantern without needing flash. Thinking the exposure had ended with the nearly instantaneous flash, the photographer stopped holding the camera steady and moved it while the shutter remained open, creating zigzags or tendrils of light. During the remaining exposure the dark branches contributed little light and stayed sharply recorded by the flash, whereas the lantern’s continued light recorded the movement. Sharp branches could therefore misleadingly suggest no camera motion. GEIPAN considers the case illustrative of the deceptive potential of lanterns and particularly photographs, and of successive misinterpretations triggered by surprise or emotion. Here a camera lock-up and incorrect date setting were experienced and described as connected to the strange sky phenomenon. The UAP was a sky lantern, but because the photograph was the principal source of perceived strangeness, GEIPAN classifies the case A: photographic artifact.