BEYNAC (87) 15.08.2023

On 15 August 2023 at 22:30 in Beynac (87), a witness saw a light appear and watched a relatively slow-moving object for 40 seconds while taking photographs. He distinguished a yellow luminous square below and an orange plume above. These gave way to a single much smaller point of light, which progressively shrank and then abruptly disappeared. GEIPAN considers the evidential basis good: 1 precise account and a usable photograph. The described shape and color, together with enlargement of the image, suggest a sky lantern. Slow movement from southwest toward south matches weather records from a station 8 km away: a very light wind toward southeast, averaging 0 km/h with gusts of 6.4 km/h. The final abrupt disappearance could be the flame going out. GEIPAN considers a sky lantern very probable and refers to the Méprises du ciel website. It classifies the case B: very probable observation of a sky lantern.