2007-10-07 - Riverside, CA - Oval

Oval object, flashing red & white, remains motionless in sky during gusty winds

On 10/07/2007 about 0935 I was going for a walk. The sky was bright blue, with strong, gusty winds blowing from the northeast. I paused on a bluff that overlooks the Santa Ana riverbed to look at the scenery. I noticed a bright object in the sky to the west. I first thought it was a mylar balloon being blown by the wind, however I quickly noticed that it was not moving nearly as fast as, or in the same direction as the wind. Its path through the sky was quite smooth, not like it was being tossed about by the wind. The object was oval and was changing color every few seconds from reddish orange to white. It seemed to me that the object was slowing turning or wobbling, alternately showing a red and white surface. The object was bright, but not glittery as a metallic balloon would appear reflecting sunlight. I watched the object for about 5 minutes as it slowly made an arc towards the southeast. It finally hovered in one spot in the sky. I continued to watch it for another 20 minutes or so, and apparently it was gaining in altitude. When I first saw it, it had a definite oval shape and seemed to be about the same altitude as some general aviation type aircraft that were flying in the vicinity. After watching it hover, the size gradually reduced to where it looked like a star visible in the daytime. After watching the object for almost a half an hour, I started to walk home, stopping every so often to see if the object was still there. I hoped to locate it once I got home, where I could use binoculars to look at it, however the road took a turn through tall trees, and I was unable to find it again. It continued the flashing effect for the entire duration. There were numerous jet and propeller driven aircraft seen in the sky during the time of the sighting. I would assume it was a balloon of some type if it were not for the fact it was unaffected by the strong winds.