ALSACAT:

Mysterious projectiles in the sky of Alsace

SELESTAT. -- The appearance of mysterious flying objects in the sky of Alsace has already been reported on several occasions. The testimonies of the witnesses seem to be more or less consistent. But are these "saucers" or flying "cigars"? Are they simply meteorological phenomena? Without seeking to settle the matter, let us content ourselves with recounting the facts.

The first reports come from the region of Sélestat. On Tuesday around 10 p.m., several people saw in the sky a luminous object moving from northeast to southwest with extreme speed. Its size was at least twice that of a large airplane at a similar altitude. As for its shape, it resembled a long cigar, the front part of which was luminous and sulfur-green in color. The "cigar" itself was followed by a series of four to five glowing yellow spheres. The whole thing moved at great speed and disappeared within a few seconds.

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MOMMENHEIM. -- A quarter of an hour earlier, several residents of Mommenheim witnessed a similar sighting. These people were in the street when they suddenly saw a flat, luminous disc moving rapidly across the sky, ascending vertically from bottom to top. All those present made the same observation and their accounts agree. (954)

ABOUT STRANGE PHENOMENA IN THE ALSATIAN SKY

Are they flying saucers, rockets, or meteors?

Our readers will no doubt remember that we reported on two occasions the appearance of mysterious flying objects in the Alsatian sky, in Sélestat, in Mommenheim, and in Thann, on Tuesday, between 9 and 10 p.m.

These reports appear to be confirmed by information arriving from other localities.

In Ingwiller

On Tuesday evening, again between 9:30 and 10 p.m., several people observed the passage of an aerial object. The appearance was that of a fireball with a luminous trail at the rear, colored green and reddish.

This object, moving at great speed, was heading from West to East.

In Nancy

It seems that the path of this mysterious projectile was not limited to the sky of our region, as in Nancy, Miss Meunier, who runs a stand at the exhibition, noticed on Tuesday evening, around 9:50 p.m., a large fireball tracing a luminous arc in the sky. This ball, which seemed to move from West to East, appeared to be the size and shape of a football. (1055)

Two young women who passed by a bit later on rue Gambetta were intrigued by a cone-shaped fireball that shot through the sky, also from West to East and at high speed, though slower than that of a jet aircraft. (1042)

In Sarrebourg

An identical phenomenon was reported shortly after in Sarrebourg by a resident of the town. (1055)

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The consistency in the observations and timing makes hallucination unlikely.

What should we make of these phenomena? Only specialists could answer that. Are we dealing with a new type of aerial craft or with unreported meteors, as one of our correspondents believes—who disagrees with previous witnesses:

In Niederroedern

During the night from Wednesday to Thursday, around 11:45 p.m., observers noticed a sort of incandescent balloon with a greenish color and a luminous tail.

Our correspondent does not believe in flying saucers but rather in an astronomical phenomenon. (428)

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It should be noted that the shapes reported differ from one correspondent to another, but our source in Sélestat points out that this is to be expected, as the projectile in question may turn at such high speed that it appears to change shape.

What is this mysterious projectile? Time may tell. (R)

[Drawing caption:] This is how our informant from Sélestat saw the mysterious phenomenon on the evening of Tuesday, July 8: a luminous body, whose front part, shaped like a cigar, was greenish in color. In the luminous trail following the projectile, several reddish fireballs could be clearly distinguished. (Dernouvel)