ALSACAT:

ALSACAT is my comprehensive catalog of UFO sighting reports in Alsace, the region is the North-East of France, whether they are "explained" or "unexplained".

The ALSACAT catalog is made of case files with a case number, summary, quantitative information (date, location, number of witnesses...), classifications, all sources mentioning the case with their references, a discussion of the case in order to evaluate its causes, and a history of the changes made to the file. A general index and thematic sub-catalogs give access to these Alsatian case files.

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Case of Bouxwiller, on July 19, 2005:

Case number:

ALSACAT-2005-07-19-BOUXWILLER-1

Summary:

Ufologist Patrick Gamb, on his "UFOweb" website, had published a report for a sighting on July 19, 2005, in the morning, in the Bas-Rhin department.

The witness said: "in the morning at 1:45 or so, I came home with a friend. I was driving when I was attracted [sic] by a red-orange glow in the sky. The color was the same as the setting sun of a summer evening. And that night there was no moon and no stars. The shape was like the letter D reversed with the rounded part at the top and very flat. Around this form there was a luminous halo. Then it quickly disappeared in the distance by becoming smaller and smaller as it did. It was on the road from Bouxwiller to Imbsheim in the bas rhin."

The report was apparently first published on the website of the Alsatian ufology association SPICA.

Data:

Temporal data:

Date:	July 19, 2005
Time:	~01:45 a.m.
Duration:	?
First known report date:	Auguust 10, 2005
Reporting delay:	Hours, weeks.

Geographical data:

Department:	Bas-Rhin
City:	Bouxwiller
Place:	From a car driving on the D6 road between Bouxwliller and Imbsheim, UFO in the sky.
Latitude:	48.812
Longitude:	7.467
Uncertainty radius:	1.5 km

Witnesses data:

Number of alleged witnesses:	1
Number of known witnesses:	1
Number of named witnesses:	0
Witness(es) ages:	Adult.
Witness(es) types:	Female.

Ufology data:

Reporting channel:	Website of the Alsatian ufology group SPICA.
Type of location:	From a car driving between two villages, UFO in the sky.
Visibility conditions:	Night
UFO observed:	Yes
UFO arrival observed:	No
UFO departure observed:	Yes
Entities:	No
Photographs:	No.
Sketch(s) by witness(es):	No.
Sketch(es) approved by witness(es):	No.
Witness(es) feelings:	?
Witnesses interpretation:	?

Classifications:

Hynek:	NL
ALSACAT:	Possible Chinese lantern.

Sources:

[Ref. spa1:] "SPICA" UFOLOGY ASSOCIATION:

July 19, 2005, in the morning - Bouxwiller 67

Source: Carine

Title: really odd shape in the sky on 07/19/05

Message: Tuesday, July 19, 2005 in the morning around 1:45, I was coming home from a friend's. I was driving when I was drawn to a red-orange glow in the sky. The color was the same as the setting sun of a summer evening. And that night there was no moon, no stars. The shape was like the inverted letter D with the rounded part up and very flat. Around this form there was a luminous halo. Then it disappeared quickly in the distance while shrinking as doing so. It was on the road from Bouxwiller to Imbsheim in the bas-rhin. Did you have any other testimonies of that night?

[Ref. uwb1:] WITNESS REPORT PUBLISHED BY "UFOWEB":

On July 19, 2005, in the morning in Bouxwiller department 67.

Really weird shape in the sky on 07/19/05

On Tuesday, July 19, 2005, in the morning at 1:45 or so, I came home with a friend. I was driving when I was attracted [sic] by a red-orange glow in the sky. The color was the same as the setting sun of a summer evening. And that night there was no moon and no stars. The shape was like the letter D reversed with the rounded part at the top and very flat. Around this form there was a luminous halo. Then it quickly disappeared in the distance by becoming smaller and smaller as it did. It was on the road from Bouxwiller to Imbsheim in the bas rhin.

[Ref. lcn1:] LUC CHASTAN - "BASE OVNI FRANCE":

Bouxwiller (67) on July 19, 2005

General features

Num Base:	1871
Department:	Bas Rhin (67)
Place of observation:	Bouxwiller
Latitude:	48.816
Longitude:	+7.483
Date of observation:	July 19, 2005
Hour:	01:45 hours
Duration (HH:MM:SS):	N.C.
Weather:	No weather indication
Type of observation:	Visual: Distant
Nbr of witness(es):	1
Official investigation:	No

Features of the object

Nbr of object:	1
Type of object:	Half sphere
Size:	Not specified
Color:	Red
Luminosity:	Not specified
Visual characteristics:	No indication
Speed:	not defined
Movement/Displacement:	In straight line
Object on the ground:	No
Instantaneous disappearance:	No

Observation

The witness goes home by car on the road from Bouxwiller to Imbsheim when his eyes are drawn to an orange-red glow in the sky. The color was the same as the setting sun of a summer evening. He discovers a shape like the letter D reversed with the rounded par at the top and very flat. Around this form there was a halo of light. Then the object quickly disappeared off by shrinking progressively.

Sources

Spica ** http://www.spica.org

[Ref. rnc1:] "RESEAU NATIONAL CIVIL DE SURVEILLANCE DU CIEL":

Message 07/19/2005 - 01:45 - Bas-Rhin (67) - Red-orangeish object

Witness report gatherd [sic] on Baseovnifrance:

http://baseovnifrance.free.fr/listereq.php?req=where%20annee%20LIKE%202005%20AND%20f

Quote:

07/19/2005 - 01:45 - Bouxwiller (67)

Source: Spica by ** http://www.spica.org

[Ref. spa2:] UFOLOGY GROUP "SPICA":

City	Date and hour of observation	General shape Identification	General color Hypothesis	Conclusion
BOUXWILLER	Tuesday 19 July 2005 at 01:45	elliptical (2D) Unidentified	red None	Unsolved -lack of info

Discussion:

I could have thought of a "red moon" partially hidden by the clouds; it could look like this shape and explain the halo, but the moon was not visible there at that date and time. We certainly have Mara there at about 100° (East) and an elevation of 20°, but it can hardly match what is described.

The most usual cause remains a possibility: a Chinese lantern...

Above: A Chinese lantern.

Evaluation:

Possible Chinese lantern.

Sources references:

* = Source is available to me.
? = Source I am told about but could not get so far. Help needed.

[spa1] * Testimony published by the SPICA ufology group, Alsace, France, was on their website www.spica.org
[uwb1] * "France: Les dernières observations en France", message on the mailing list UFOweb France, France, August 10, 2005.
[lcn1] * "Bouxwiller (67) on 19 juillet 2005", case record by Luc Chastan, on his ufology website Base OVNI France, France, circa 2004, at http://baseovnifrance.free.fr/listgen.php?typlist=1&page=1&numobs=1871
[rnc1] * Republication on the "Réseau National Civil de Surveillance du Ciel" (RNCSC) website. France, 2007 , at http://francesurveillance.xooit.com/t346-19-07-2005-01-45-Bas-Rhin-67-Objet-rouge-orang%C3%A9.htm
[spa2] * "DEPARTEMENT 67 - BAS-RHIN", listing of UFO sighting reports by the Alsatian ufology group SPICA, Alsace, France, not dated, found in May 2015, at http://www.spica.org/Page_Listing_67.htm

File history:

Authoring:

Main author:	Patrick Gross
Contributors:	None
Reviewers:	None
Editeur:	Patrick Gross

Changes history:

Version:	Create/changed by:	Date:	Description:
0.1	Patrick Gross	December 4, 2014	Creation, [uwb1], [lcn1], [rnc1].
1.0	Patrick Gross	December 4, 2014	First published.
1.1	Patrick Gross	June 11, 2015	Addition [spa2].
1.2	Patrick Gross	April 25, 2018	Addition [spa1].

This page was last updated on April 25, 2018.