Bright light appears in aftermath of power outage in Sonoma, California on September 23, 2003
The sighting occurred just minutes after a major electrical blackout occurred the evening of September 23, 2003 in the eastern half of the town of Sonoma. My wife and I were eating dinner at the Himalayian Inn restaurant, in a courtyard off the town square of Sonoma. All of the lights went out in the open-air courtyard and alley that is shared by several businesses, including an Irish pub restaurant. We would learn after dinner that the lights had gone out in the eastern half of the town. We never heard what happened or why.
It was about dusk when we had decided to eat dinner, choosing to sit outside because of the pleasant night. We were in the middle of the main course when the lights went out. The restaurant owner came out and we chatted for few minutes as I pointed out a couple constellations and Mars. He went back inside to find candles and flashlights, while I sat down to finish my dinner.
Just after sitting down I saw a very bright light, similar in luminosity to the International Space Station [ISS], which I've seen on several previous occasions. The light was moving directly north, roughly parallel to the town square. Because we were under a small veranda, I only caught glimpse of the bright light when it was at about a 60 degree angle. It moved at a speed similar to ISS, but after about 2 seconds, its light suddenly dimmed and for the remainder of the sighting it gradually faded out of sight.
I commented to my wife about it, but she hadn't seen it. We were in Sonoma for the Michelin Challenge Bibendum as members of the invited press. I own a small refractor telescope and have frequently observed satellites with my naked eye, through binoculars and through the Richfield telescope. Had the object not suddenly faded in luminocity, I would have concluded it might have been the ISS, which will also exhibit similar behavior when it crosses into the earth's shadow. However, since this object was moving almost due north on an apparent track that would keep it in the sun's light, I suspect the drop in luminocity would be attributable to other factors.
The sighting occurred just minutes after a major electrical blackout occurred the evening of September 23, 2003 in the eastern half of the town of Sonoma. My wife and I were eating dinner at the Himalayian Inn restaurant, in a courtyard off the town square of Sonoma. All of the lights went out in the open-air courtyard and alley that is shared by several businesses, including an Irish pub restaurant. We would learn after dinner that the lights had gone out in the eastern half of the town. We never heard what happened or why.
It was about dusk when we had decided to eat dinner, choosing to sit outside because of the pleasant night. We were in the middle of the main course when the lights went out. The restaurant owner came out and we chatted for few minutes as I pointed out a couple constellations and Mars. He went back inside to find candles and flashlights, while I sat down to finish my dinner.
Just after sitting down I saw a very bright light, similar in luminosity to the International Space Station [ISS], which I've seen on several previous occasions. The light was moving directly north, roughly parallel to the town square. Because we were under a small veranda, I only caught glimpse of the bright light when it was at about a 60 degree angle. It moved at a speed similar to ISS, but after about 2 seconds, its light suddenly dimmed and for the remainder of the sighting it gradually faded out of sight.
I commented to my wife about it, but she hadn't seen it. We were in Sonoma for the Michelin Challenge Bibendum as members of the invited press. I own a small refractor telescope and have frequently observed satellites with my naked eye, through binoculars and through the Richfield telescope. Had the object not suddenly faded in luminocity, I would have concluded it might have been the ISS, which will also exhibit similar behavior when it crosses into the earth's shadow. However, since this object was moving almost due north on an apparent track that would keep it in the sun's light, I suspect the drop in luminocity would be attributable to other factors.
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Sonoma
USA
3-4 seconds
3-4 seconds
38.28
-122.47
other
CA
Occurred : 9/23/2003 20:00 (Entered as : 09/23/2003 20:00) Reported: 10/7/2003 6:08:29 PM 18:08 Posted: 10/7/2003 Location: Sonoma, CA Shape: Other Duration: 3-4 seconds
Bright light appears in aftermath of power outage in Sonoma, California on September 23, 2003