An account in Ille-et-Vilaine, France

This observation case was re-examined (see the document Investigation Notes). On January 13, 1978, at around 5:40 p.m., a female driver and then her husband observed the slow movement of a luminous phenomenon of rectangular shape and reddish-orange color in the sky; the presence of a halo on the long sides of the rectangle was noted. No particular noise was heard during the observation phases. No trace on the ground was found, and no other testimony was collected by the gendarmerie about this phenomenon. This case is consistent (two witnesses), and the description of the observed UAP is precise. The sincerity and credibility of the witnesses have never been questioned. The described phenomenon shares many common characteristics (observation duration, shape, size, color) with a luminous phenomenon linked to the Sun: a solar pillar. Moreover, the Sun had just set below the horizon directly in the axis indicated by the witnesses. The winter season and the presence of a few clouds favored the observation of a solar pillar. It is not the visual perception of the witnesses that is in question, but the interpretation that the witnesses make of their observation through their feelings (astonishment, observation of a rare luminous phenomenon). In the current GEIPAN classification, this case of low strangeness is classified as UAP A, an observation linked to a misidentification with a solar pillar.