posted on Jan, 9 2004 @ 05:05 PM
M43,
It is very possible that you did see something strange, but here is something that people see fairly often, but don't realize what it is. You might
want to check it out so you can rule it out.
How long did the light you saw last?
If it was only a matter of 10 seconds or so you could have seen an 'iridium flare'. Motorola launched a 'constellation' of satelites called
'Iridium'. There are about 60-70 of them in orbit. Each satelite has 3 very large antennae that look like mirrors. If you are in the right spot
on the ground you can see the reflection of the SUN off of them. These things light up like a multi megacandlepower flashlight in your face. They
look like a commercial jets landing lights (maybe brighter) - and you can't see any blinking nav lights - because there aren't any. This 'light
in the sky' seems to turn on within a second, burns very brightly, then goes out. Sometimes it looks like a jet with it's landing lights on, but
going BACKWARDS - it appears to be going away from you.
Go to
www.heavens-above.com... if you want to check them out.
You can get precise predictions of when one will happen in the sky above your location from that page. Please be aware that you will need to get the
latitude and longitude reasonably close of where you will observe from, and also - synchronize your watch/clock to within a couple of seconds of a
NIST clock. If you miss the prediction by even 30 seconds you will miss seeing the flare. Check it out!