CHAMPIGNY-SUR-MARNE (94) 04.07.2023

On 4 July 2023 at about 05:00, while preparing to leave home in Champigny-sur-Marne (94), a witness observed an unidentified aerial phenomenon from his home for about 10 minutes. He described it as a slow explosion in the sky, amber yellow and becoming brighter. The patch of light changed shape without moving. He took 3 photographs. Only 1 account was recorded. GEIPAN judges the account's evidential strength good. The photographs were poor and difficult to analyze, but 1 image helped establish the viewing azimuth and elevation. Under GEIPAN's criteria, evidential strength is the amount of information collected for an account that is considered reliable and objectively substantiated. The investigation demonstrated that the witness had observed the Moon under particular conditions: full, at perigee and partly obscured by clouds; see the investigation report. GEIPAN bases this on its amber yellow color and strong brightness, often reported in such sightings; the exact match between the Moon's azimuth reconstructed in Stellarium and the UAP's azimuth derived from a photograph; approximately 10 minutes without movement visible to the naked eye, typical of an astronomical observation; and a round shape like the Moon's, partially hidden by passing clouds. GEIPAN explains the perceived unusualness through this unfamiliar appearance: color, brightness, size and shape partially obscured by clouds. The case is classified as A: observation of the Moon.