White sphere viewed with naked eye and telescope in broad daylight was most likely a high altitude balloon
A white sphere was reported on local radio to be moving against the wind above the city, despite relatively brisk winds from the west. I observed a very small silver sphere to the east northeast at approximately 80 degrees from the horizon. The object was moving very very slowly to the southwest. The sky was clear and visiblilty was excellent from south Minneapolis. The object reflected sunlight and was not luminous. Observation of the object under 150x magnification with a refracting astronomical telescope revealed it to be a very high altitude balloon of significant size. It was seen to slowly deform and show tension lines which shifted as it returned to its original shape. No instrument pakage was visible. Consultations with meterologists at the University of Minnesota confirmed that every observation I made was consistent with the behavior of a very high altitude balloon (+50000 feet), where it would not be affected by lower altitude winds, explaining its anomalous behavior in seeming to move against the prevailing wind.
((NUFORC Note: One of many reports of the same object. The object has yet to be identified by law enforcement, the FAA, the National Weather Service, or local media outlets. We do not know what caused the sighting. PD))
A white sphere was reported on local radio to be moving against the wind above the city, despite relatively brisk winds from the west. I observed a very small silver sphere to the east northeast at approximately 80 degrees from the horizon. The object was moving very very slowly to the southwest. The sky was clear and visiblilty was excellent from south Minneapolis. The object reflected sunlight and was not luminous. Observation of the object under 150x magnification with a refracting astronomical telescope revealed it to be a very high altitude balloon of significant size. It was seen to slowly deform and show tension lines which shifted as it returned to its original shape. No instrument pakage was visible. Consultations with meterologists at the University of Minnesota confirmed that every observation I made was consistent with the behavior of a very high altitude balloon (+50000 feet), where it would not be affected by lower altitude winds, explaining its anomalous behavior in seeming to move against the prevailing wind.
((NUFORC Note: One of many reports of the same object. The object has yet to be identified by law enforcement, the FAA, the National Weather Service, or local media outlets. We do not know what caused the sighting. PD))
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Minneapolis
USA
approx 2 hrs
approx 2 hrs
44.99
-93.30
sphere
MN
Occurred : 8/19/2004 15:30 (Entered as : 08/19/2004 15:30) Reported: 9/17/2004 11:29:55 PM 23:29 Posted: 9/29/2004 Location: Minneapolis, MN Shape: Sphere Duration: approx 2 hrs
White sphere viewed with naked eye and telescope in broad daylight was most likely a high altitude balloon