2015-06-22 - Mount Juliet, TN - Changing

Compact semi-transparent cloud-shape moving NNW merges with "star." Becomes very bright and fades as it moves away.

My husband and I were stargazing while floating around in our pool last night (June 22, 2015 around 10:40pm) when he pointed out a small puffy cloud moving along fairly quickly North-North West on an otherwise cloudless night. The cloud didn’t seem to change shape at all, nor break apart.

Then it got weird, and my husband and I actually got out of the pool and asked each other at the same time ”are you seeing this?”.

As the small puff-cloud passed over what we thought to be a bright star, the star began moving WITH it. The cloud then shrank in size around the star and became very bright, (about the size of four Jupiters in the winter sky) and was moving with good speed. As it kept moving it eventually faded, and disappeared. This could have been seen crossing over I-40 in the Mount Juliet area, around 10:40.

I’d like to note, we’ve never seen anything like this before and hope someone else will report it as well.



((NUFORC Note: Witness elects to remain totally anonymous; provides no contact information. PD))

((NUFORC Note: Out-gassing event of spent rocket. See note below, submitted by Mr. Ted Molczan. PD))

((NOTE FROM MR. TED MOLCZAN))

Hello Peter,

Your hunch probably is correct.

The Sentinel 2A satellite was launched on a Vega rocket from the Guiana Space Center, last night at 9:52 PM EDT (Jun 23
01:52 UTC).

Coverage of the launch was here:

http://spaceflightnow.com/2015/06/22/vv05-mission-status-center/

SeeSat-L received several reports of sightings near 23:49 EDT (3:49 UTC), of what appears to have been exhaust from the final burn of the Vega rocket's AVUM liquid fueled upper stage. That burn lowered the perigee to ensure that the object decays from orbit within a reasonable time, in order to curb the growth of space debris.

http://satobs.org/seesat/Jun-2015/0193.html

http://satobs.org/seesat/Jun-2015/0194.html

http://satobs.org/seesat/Jun-2015/0195.html

http://satobs.org/seesat/Jun-2015/0198.html

http://satobs.org/seesat/Jun-2015/0199.html

Marco Langbroek blogged his analysis:

http://sattrackcam.blogspot.nl/2015/06/aurora-hunter-images-last-moments-of.html

Please let me know if you have any questions or comments.

Best regards,
Ted

((END NOTE))


((NUFORC Note: Witness elects to remain totally anonymous; provides no contact information. PD))