Case file · Sighting
Fiery 'craft' over France, 5 November 1990
At about 7 pm on 5 November 1990, thousands across France, Belgium and neighbouring countries saw a slow formation of bright lights crossing the sky; many described a huge triangle.
1990 CE · 46.80, 1.70 · status: explained
The account
Pilots and gendarmes were among the witnesses. The French space agency's SEPRA identified the cause within days: the re-entry of the third stage of a Soviet Proton rocket that had launched a Gorizont satellite.
The sceptical view
A textbook case: an identified space re-entry produced many sincere reports of a structured craft with dark body and windows.