Possible Chinese Laterns seen in Excelsior, MN, July 4, 2008
This is a follow up to the report below that I found reviewing sightings. I recall objects very similiar to these at that time. I was at the very northern tip of North Center Lake in Lindstrom, MN, watching a 2+ hr fireworks display. There were approx. 200-300 people that observed the very same thing as there were 100+ people with me on the beach and 60+ large boats in the bay. These objects were peculiar at first when we all saw them rising from the treeline straight south of us and I recall people calling them UFOs and a few even got a little nervous until them floated a couple hundred yards off to the west of us. You could visibly see outlines of the objects. They were Chinese paper lanterns... a lot of them, 10-12 sounds about right. They were following the same line of flight and were spaced out about a minute apart (that was the time in between sightings as they rose out of the treeline.) This sighting was out of Excelsior, which is 60 miles straight southwest of Lindstrom.
EXCELSIOR, MINNESOTA, FRIDAY, JULY 04, 2008, at 22:35 hrs. (CDT) A gentleman telephoned NUFORC on July 05th, 2008, to apprise us of a sighting that occurred near Minneapolis, MN, shortly after the local fireworks display. He reported that many people witnessed the event, and that it was quite dramatic in appearance. The witness is an airline pilot, with considerable experience, and he is a skilled amateur astronomer. If anyone else witnessed this display of lights, we would welcome additional reports. Full Report
((NUFORC Note: Witness elects to remain totally anonymous; provides no contact information. The report above may have merit, but we would be a bit surprised if the airline pilot, who first reported the phenomenon, could not distinguish pyrotechnic lanterns from something more dramatic. Moreover, the sighting in Lindstrom probably was not related to Chinese lanterns over Lake Minnetonka, given the 60 mile distance between the two locations. We are grateful to the individual who submitted this report. PD))
This is a follow up to the report below that I found reviewing sightings. I recall objects very similiar to these at that time. I was at the very northern tip of North Center Lake in Lindstrom, MN, watching a 2+ hr fireworks display. There were approx. 200-300 people that observed the very same thing as there were 100+ people with me on the beach and 60+ large boats in the bay. These objects were peculiar at first when we all saw them rising from the treeline straight south of us and I recall people calling them UFOs and a few even got a little nervous until them floated a couple hundred yards off to the west of us. You could visibly see outlines of the objects. They were Chinese paper lanterns... a lot of them, 10-12 sounds about right. They were following the same line of flight and were spaced out about a minute apart (that was the time in between sightings as they rose out of the treeline.) This sighting was out of Excelsior, which is 60 miles straight southwest of Lindstrom.
EXCELSIOR, MINNESOTA, FRIDAY, JULY 04, 2008, at 22:35 hrs. (CDT) A gentleman telephoned NUFORC on July 05th, 2008, to apprise us of a sighting that occurred near Minneapolis, MN, shortly after the local fireworks display. He reported that many people witnessed the event, and that it was quite dramatic in appearance. The witness is an airline pilot, with considerable experience, and he is a skilled amateur astronomer. If anyone else witnessed this display of lights, we would welcome additional reports. Full Report
((NUFORC Note: Witness elects to remain totally anonymous; provides no contact information. The report above may have merit, but we would be a bit surprised if the airline pilot, who first reported the phenomenon, could not distinguish pyrotechnic lanterns from something more dramatic. Moreover, the sighting in Lindstrom probably was not related to Chinese lanterns over Lake Minnetonka, given the 60 mile distance between the two locations. We are grateful to the individual who submitted this report. PD))
No
No
No
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No
No
No
Off
No
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No
No
No
Lindstrom
USA
30 minutes
30 minutes
45.39
-92.85
rectangle
MN
Occurred : 7/4/2008 21:00 (Entered as : 07/04/08 21:00) Reported: 3/1/2010 7:36:52 PM 19:36 Posted: 4/13/2010 Location: Lindstrom, MN Shape: Rectangle Duration: 30 minutes
Possible Chinese Lanterns seen in Excelsior, MN July 4, 2008