An account in Bouches-du-Rh�ne, France

On Saturday, October 24, 2015 at 8:30 PM, several people observe in the sky the slow movement, one behind the other, of numerous reddish lights that appear at low altitude near Mollégès (13) and end up disappearing vertically between Saint-Sixte (13) and Le Contras (13). The witness takes photos and videos. Other people called by phone also observe the lights. Two testimonies are collected. The observation of reddish lights crossing the sky, on a weekend evening, clearly suggests Thai lanterns, probably released nearby at the end of a private party. The movement observed is an angular elevation in the North-Northwest axis: it could be a movement toward the witnesses and/or a vertical ascent. The local weather recorded at Salon, Marignane, and Avignon indicates a weak, very unstable wind: it is not possible to determine the wind direction at the exact time and place of the observation. The two photos analyzed reveal surprisingly sharp bright points, white in one photo, and colored in the other. It is noted that these points are exactly at the same position in the image: these two characteristics (extreme sharpness, fixed position) are those of what are called "dead pixels" or "hot pixels"; these are common defects of digital cameras, noticeable only in night photos. These two photos therefore provide no information, except that the observed phenomena were not very luminous. Due to the witnesses' account being compatible on all points with the observation of Thai lanterns, and despite the impossibility of validating the hypothesis with the local wind data, the GEIPAN classifies this case "B" probable observation of Thai lanterns. Meteociel data from the day of the observation: - weather at Avignon: Météociel. - weather at Salon de Provence: Météociel. - weather at Marignane: Météociel.