Need help debunking my sighting from seasoned skywatcers/ufo mavens

I would like some help in debunking an observation made on Thursday evening March 26 between 8:10PM and 8:25PM. I had some difficulty in trying to describe it because I don’t have experience describing aerial phenomena. I would like the seasoned individuals to debunk this notion, or a least give it some degree to which it might actually be UFOs.

I have seen UFO twice, once an object making extreme right hand turns vey rapidly over San Jose, the second a standard gray lozenge UFO traveling up the Napa Valley. Because of these, I do observe the sky, but it has been 29 years since the last sighting, and I can pretty much debunk everything else I see myself because I am aware of UFO stuff.

My wife and I were walking the dog. Night was clear and beautiful with a couple of clouds. Location is Santa Cruz, CA. in the area of Brommer Avenue 30th Street. I do not drink or use drugs.

I stopped because I saw two bright lights traveling apparently high in the sky in perfect parallel tandem configuration, as if they were locked together by some kind of invisible bar. They were traveling from the southwest toward the north east. They were coming from roughly Orion and headed toward the northeast roughly parallel with the handle of the big dipper until they moved beyond sight.

Their luminosity was a bit over twice the brightest star in the big dipper. Holding my hand about a foot from my face and extending both forefingers as far open as I can was about as far apart as they were in the sky at about fifteen degrees from straight above when first sighted.

They traveled at a pace of about three seconds to cover about that same distance i.e. my two forefingers extended as far apart as i can get them about a foot from my face. I would say they were going about maybe a half to two thirds the speed of the International Space Station when it comes into view. This would be faster than most airliners, but not blazing fast, as I could follow them for a while.

I can’t be certain about the height, but they seemed to up there a ways. I watched carefully to see if they had any of the odd motions, but they all went ruler straight across the sky.

I was at first fascinated by these two, so kept staring at them, but then a series of single lights, just like these first two, followed in exactly the same direction and course at exactly the same speed. The first two were interesting, but seeing the next several are what seemed really spooky. They came from the same direction at intervals and followed the first two, always in a straight line in the sky and always exactly parallel with the course of the first two.

Most of the sky traffic from where we take these walks occurs from the south to the north generally up and down the coast, or the north to the south, and you can see the blinking lights as they get closer, and sometimes you can hear them. You can also see planes traveling in odd directions, usually closer to the plane of the horizon maybe thirty to 70 degrees from vertical. I have never been confused by these.

My wife saw the first two of these lights that were ‘locked’ together, then the next one, and became frightened and refused to look any more. She told me to hurry along, because she was thinking if she looked at them, they might come down and abduct us (seriously, she said this). I am not even aware of talking much about UFOs with her in or marriage over the years, but she was spooked.

I couldn’t stop looking, and these objects continued to emerge and go by in exactly the same direction every ten to twenty seconds apart until my wife and I entered our park and the light got bright. My wife was furious that I kept looking at them, and told me to come home as fast as we could. I know I missed some of them because she wouldn't let me keep looking without moving along.

I counted at least twelve of these objects during the course of our short walk. There were likely more, because they never stopped emerging, but those were the ones I saw. The whole walk usually takes about fifteen minutes, but lasted longer because I saw these about half way around and kept stopping to spot the lights.

My observations are imperfect because I am an imperfect observer. It makes me realize how difficult it really is to describe what you see in the sky, so my sympathies to others who try.

I really don’t want to go around thinking these are UFOs if there is some other knowledge or rational explanation. It was so strange there were so many of them along the same path, same speed, same brightness, same trajectory etc., I can’t imagine planes doing that, and there was never any blinking. I could not see any color in them.

a reply to: Ceffer

Starlink satellites. They follow along in a line as they go. There are currently three constellations that have been launched.

Hmm, yeah, that could be it. YouTube video shows a bunch really close together over Netherlands, followed by stragglers. The stragglers look more like what I saw. There were no tight clusters, but the first two that were parallel were the odd men out.

Thanks, I had not heard of these before. UFO no more. I have seen the ISS from time to time.

I'll tell my wife so she doesn't think we were almost abducted LOL!

a reply to: Ceffer

The first two clusters were launched long enough ago that they'd be spread out by now. The third was just recently launched.

In that case, I am glad I was able to see them. Fascinating.

Saw exactly the same thing last night here in France.

3 in tandem followed by about 4 or 5 others not in tandem on the same flight path before they all disappeared around the same spot in the sky.

Lags

I'll tell my wife she was almost abducted by Elon Musk. She'll like that.

a reply to: Ceffer

would be more inclined to say UFO over satellite if the trajectory or speed fluctuated. As one user mentioned, most likely starlink satellites.

Yup, Starlink Satellites.
We watched them last night, shortly after you, from Northern Ontario.
Started with the two close to each other.
Ended with 4 or 5 staggered afterwards.

I'm suspecting that I will have a few reports come in today.

Technology marches on and the Starlink satellites will be the next 'default' for perceived unknowns in the sky, especially if they happen to be in anything resembling a line or sequence. I'm not arguing against the explanations here, just making an observation, if you'll pardon the pun.

originally posted by: Macenroe82
Yup, Starlink Satellites.
We watched them last night, shortly after you, from Northern Ontario.
Started with the two close to each other.
Ended with 4 or 5 staggered afterwards.

I'm suspecting that I will have a few reports come in today.

Who has any tracking info on this as they were also seen in Idaho between the times mentioned. When I tried to do some tracking it showed at least one train was over Africa.

www.satflare.com...

I've seen Starlink twice now. Once in Wyoming late last year, and again here in Colorado just a few nights ago. The first sighting was me and about 20 others, the sky was a bit clearer in Wyoming. It was cool how uniform they traveled all in a line, seemed like 50 or so of them. None of us knew what it was at the time, so we all joked about an invasion till we found out it was Starlink the next day.

I guess it's going to start being pretty common to see these things? It's kinda freaky in a Skynet kind of way..

a reply to: abeverage

There are many trackers online.
This one let's you track all previous launches

If you're really lucky sometime you can see a Soyuz approach/depart the ISS.

Years ago my daughter and I were out in the yard to watch an ISS pass. We did it often, playing a game of "who can spot it first." This time I saw it first. Then my daughter (about 5 at the time) said, "there's another one daddy!" Sure enough, the shuttle had undocked and was trailing the ISS. Very cool.

She won that night. Hands down.

a reply to: Phage

When we lived in Kapolei we went out one night and watched the shuttle trailing behind it. They were just about to come home and were still close behind.

a reply to: Zaphod58

I just got inspired to check out Heavens-Above.

Seems they took down the Iridium flare predictions. That's a bummer.

www.heavens-above.com...


Found this:

It's not really about predictability, but rather the new ones being not very reflective at all. They're also quite small.

The old ones had remarkably reflective and directional antennas: en.wikipedia.org...:Iridium_Satellite.jpg

www.reddit.com...

originally posted by: Phage
If you're really lucky sometime you can see a Soyuz approach/depart the ISS.

Years ago my daughter and I were out in the yard to watch an ISS pass. We did it often, playing a game of "who can spot it first." This time I saw it first. Then my daughter (about 5 at the time) said, "there's another one daddy!" Sure enough, the shuttle had undocked and was trailing the ISS. Very cool.

She won that night. Hands down.

I find, in my experience, five year old girls usually win hands down at everything. Mine used to run rings round me and both in their mid thirties now, they still do.

While there are certainly a lot of people mistaking Starlink satellites for UFOs, there has also been a noticable increase in sightings of just these sorts of line formations of actual, low-flying UFOs with many of them flying in pairs brighter and at a speed faster than most satellites. And they're sometimes seen and videoed accompanied by a cluster of smaller, sparkling objects. Color varies from bluish white to red orange.

They can be explained away as Starlink, and they're being brushed off because of that, but they're only vaguely similar. I don't know what they are and can only speculate.

originally posted by: Phage
If you're really lucky sometime you can see a Soyuz approach/depart the ISS.

Years ago my daughter and I were out in the yard to watch an ISS pass. We did it often, playing a game of "who can spot it first." This time I saw it first. Then my daughter (about 5 at the time) said, "there's another one daddy!" Sure enough, the shuttle had undocked and was trailing the ISS. Very cool.

She won that night. Hands down.

I remember seeing both together with my daughter as well! very cool back before I was doing atrophototgraphy
Very cool!