2010-09-16 - Piscataway, NJ - Unknown

Object seen over Interstate 287 in Piscataway NJ

On 09/16/2010 at 4am I was responding to a page from work when I looked out of my hotel room window from the 5th Floor at the Radisson Hotel in Piscataway and noticed a brilliant white-lightish-orange light suspended approximately 1000 feet over the highway (287) that runs just along the hotel. My distance to object was 1000 feet horizontal and 100 feet vertical based on nearby billboards I used for reference. The light was stationary at first. It appeared like an orange sodium vapor light if viewed at much closer range, about the size of a quarter held at arms' length.

I come from a family of pilots, and had an 8 year-long job in a family-business involving lighter than air aircraft. Based on prior experience, I was surprised that I could not hear helicopter sounds from the direction of what I was seeing. I assumed this was State Police or a Lifeflight directed toward I287, so I kept watching to see what was going on. I could hear the airflow coming from the cars on the highway. Otherwise, there was complete silence. About three minutes into the viewing, the object shifted to the right side by 50 feet from my perspective. Again, I was surprised because the precision of the movement, without wobbling or wavering as is usual with hovering helicopters, was unusual. There was still no sound.

Intrigued, I kept watching for another 5m. After 5m (now it was 04:08), the object began a slow arc over the highway and moved soundlessly deeper into Piscataway and out of my view. It took 2m to complete its travel outsaide of my sight. About 20m later, I noticed a helicopter occupy the same spot and follow roughly the same trajectory. However, this time it was clear that this object was a civilian helicopter because I could see its navigation and collision lights clearly. I also saw a passenger jet aircraft during the same time at a higher altitude, with its collision and navigation lights as well.

I could not get a firm grasp of the shape of the original object. Its lights did not illuminate it well enough. It seemed to be the size of an MH-53, which is on the larger side of helicopters and is the size of a small bus. I took about 30 pictures of the object and the follow-on helicopter with my iPhone 3G.

Light Details: Front of object: steady forward directed white-orange-lightish light, similar to an orange sodium vapor streetlight Back of object: three lights; red, green, white Pattern: in back, two white pulses (either side of a boom or fuselage I could not see) followed by a red pulse underneath Time observed: 4am - 408am 9/16/2010