ELSENHEIM (67) 30.05.2024

On May 30, 2024, at 11:55 p.m., the witness on his terrace in Elsenheim (67) observed five lights in the sky, with a whitish/greenish tint, never seen before. Intrigued, he immediately contacted his father, who also confirmed the observation. Of these five luminous points, 3 flashed independently. The witness also noted an apparent beam of light connecting the ground to the brightest point. The phenomenon occurred at the level of an orange cloud and was visible for about 15 minutes before suddenly disappearing. The witness filled out a Technical Questionnaire (QT) on May 31, 2024 and transmitted it to the GEIPAN, accompanied by a sketch, photos and a video. With good evidential quality* (presence of a photo and a video) although only one of the two witnesses reported his observation, this case turns out to be a test of lighting effects made during the festival "Azariste" taking place from 29 May to 02 June 2024 at the Colmar water-sports center, about 10 km away from the witnesses. Tests were actually conducted on the evening of May 30 in preparation for a sound and light show which began the following evening and continued for three consecutive evenings, from the beach of the nautical base. Various photographs of this event are present on the festival site, including one showing six greenish beams projected towards the sky, see attached document Appendix1 and photos of the show “Azariste et le voyage des sens”. An article in the newspaper "l'Alsace" presents the preparations that took place on the evening of the observation, including the 6 projectors used that prove to be able to emit different colors (we see green, red and white). We checked the viewing azimuth using landmarks in the UAP photograph: 230°, almost the direction of the Colmar water-sports center, at azimuth 240° (see Appendix 2). The 10° difference can be explained by the beams being projected at an angle rather than necessarily vertically. Low clouds and precipitation above Colmar, also described by the witness (clouds and rain before the phenomenon) and in L’Alsace, allowed the projectors’ light to strike the clouds and create patches of light visible by the witnesses but also to make at least one of the beams visible, intermittently. GEIPAN classifies the case A: observation of skyrose searchlight displays. *according to the GEIPAN criteria, evidential quality is the amount of information considered reliable, collected for testimony.