An account in Sarthe, France

On Sunday, January 24, 2016, at around 12:40 a.m., a witness on his terrace sees a green glowing ball pass by and stop in the middle of the trees. The witness goes back inside to get his partner, and for less than two minutes they observe the silent movements of the phenomenon. The ball moves above a soccer field, then makes a very fast back-and-forth movement before dividing into 4 smaller balls. They disappear behind a nearby hedge and reappear in front of it. The 4 green balls head off toward the NNW very quickly. The intrigued witnesses go down to the street, see no other witnesses, and will not see the phenomenon again. One of the witnesses makes a statement to the gendarmerie. No other testimony will be collected. The gendarmerie indicates that a nightclub located 9 km from the town is equipped with a laser projector: this one is visible within a radius of about 20 km. Additionally, a wind farm is located in the area. The witnesses are reliable and do their best to accurately report what they saw and experienced. Following an on-site investigation, checks are made (see the investigation report). The phenomenon is not very strange insofar as it could resemble the effects (not always known and which can therefore be surprising) that a small green laser emitter equipped with a few functions (emission of a wide beam, or of several small beams) manipulated by a neighbor would produce. The elements collected do not make it possible to identify the origin of the laser (without a neighborhood investigation), but the laser nevertheless remains the probable cause of the phenomenon. GEIPAN classifies the case as B: recreational laser.