UFO sighting with (good) VIDEO over Virginia January 2014

Thunda
Ok- to all the Chinese lantern enthusiasts, here is the one undeniable reason why these are not Chinese lanterns.

Doesnt matter how much you want them to be Chinese lanterns,

and that it makes you feel warm and fuzzy to have an instant, easy knee jerk de-bunk,

I'm not a Chinese lantern enthusiast. In fact, that's the first time I've ever seen a UFO video, and commented they looked liked lanterns.

I didn't want them to be lanterns.

I didn't feel warm and fuzzy. I just posted what I thought they looked like. Never claimed to de-bunk it. And it still isn't properly de-bunked. Yet.

SquirrelNutz
There is NO chance these are Chinese lanterns.

No chance those are Chinese lanterns in your opinion.

There is a woman on the TV station's Facebook page who says she videoed the same thing in the same area and already knew they were Chinese lanterns from a New Years Eve celebration:

www.facebook.com...


Her comment was a reply to another individual who says they're lanterns as well.



I think the consensus is pretty clear here that they are Chinese/Japanese/Thai lanterns, regardless if someone chooses to believe so or not.

reply to post by Awolscout


Chinese lanterns can be set off by anyone and in fact seem to be growing trend across the country. That said while Ashburn may be predominately white (I think. I only ever venture to Ashburn to go to Lost Rhino) it is just a few minutes from Sterling which does have an Asian population.

reply to post by tsurfer2000h


"And where in the OP video does it show they just appeared?"

1.11sec

And at 42-43 seconds, the owner of the video says he watched the lights come on, go off, come back on again. Chinese Lanterns? I think not.

And your video, whilst quite obviously showing Chinese lanterns, proves nothing about this video.

Thunda
And at 42-43 seconds, the owner of the video says he watched the lights come on, go off, come back on again. Chinese Lanterns? I think not.

I think so. Chinese lanterns have an almost-open flame. Wind will blow that flame and almost extinguish the flame at times. From far away with a dancing flame, or an almost extinguished flame, the light will appear to flicker, turn off, and turn back on.

You can practice by blowing across a candle flame, if you like.

reply to post by Thunda

"And where in the OP video does it show they just appeared?"

1.11sec

And at 42-43 seconds, the owner of the video says he watched the lights come on, go off, come back on again. Chinese Lanterns? I think not.

And your video, whilst quite obviously showing Chinese lanterns, proves nothing about this video.

So then tell me how the OP video is any different than the one I posted?

The only difference is that in the OP video the man didn't see them release the lanterns which if he wasn't looking for them and just happened to see them would explain why he thinks they just appeared.

reply to post by _BoneZ_


"Practice blowing a candle flame?" How condescending.

Look, you obviously want to believe its Chinese lanterns, and thats fine, you are entitled to your opinion. However, the light at 1.11 quite clearly just appears- its not almost blown out by the wind, then re-ignited, and to be honest, its clutching at straws to suggest that, and smacks of attempting to bend the evidence to fit a theory. Go back and watch the video again and see if you can see any evidence of your suggestion.

I realise that many supposed UFO videos are Chinese lanterns, but I dont think this is the case here.

reply to post by tsurfer2000h


Groan.............Look, mate, I already have. One of the lights appears in the air at 1minute11sec- Chinese lanterns do not ignite themselves in mid air.

Can we stop going around in circles now?

Thunda
However, the light at 1.11 quite clearly just appears-

The only light I see that "just appears" is the one down in the very lower left-hand corner. And since all of the lanterns are coming up from the ground, it more than likely appeared from behind a building, tree, hill, etc. In the daytime shot, you can see plenty of buildings and trees around him

But what you can see, is each of those lights noticeably flickering. That's the flame being blown around by the wind.

Which brings us back to lanterns.

_BoneZ_

Thunda
However, the light at 1.11 quite clearly just appears-

The only light I see that "just appears" is the one down in the very lower left-hand corner. And since all of the lanterns are coming up from the ground, it more than likely appeared from behind a building, tree, hill, etc. In the daytime shot, you can see plenty of buildings and trees around him

But what you can see, is each of those lights noticeably flickering. That's the flame being blown around by the wind.

Which brings us back to lanterns.

BoneZ is right.

Additionally I did a check of the prevailing winds at several altitudes during the time of this sighting and they are blowing with the wind.

Which points to what just about everyone has said. Chinese lanterns. Its New Years, plenty of people of all types (not just Asian people) use fireworks and Chinese lanterns.

Thunda
Ok- to all the Chinese lantern enthusiasts, here is the one undeniable reason why these are not Chinese lanterns.

Chinese lanterns are lit on the ground, are then visible for a few minutes, then go out. You can usually see them in a line, coming up from the ground as they are lit and released.

They never, ever, just 'appear' in the sky, and they certainly never go out, then re-appear, as this video clearly shows. Doesnt matter how much you want them to be Chinese lanterns, and that it makes you feel warm and fuzzy to have an instant, easy knee jerk de-bunk, the evidence does not support it.

"B-but, it was New Years Eve!"- doesnt matter- that cant make alleged Chinese lanterns ignite themselves once airborne.

That's why when people shoot this type of video of points of light at night with a camera phone they should film from same position in daylight then OBSTRUCTIONS are obvious, you did see buildings and trees in the daylight shot or were you so fixated on ufo's you didn't notice that?

Ah, I see, so we have gone from wind blowing the 'flames' 'almost' out, only to re-ignite (just that one though- not any of the ones around it!) to buildings/trees etc obscuring said light, then the alleged 'lantern' passing the obstruction and becoming visible again. Hmmm. And obviously, the guy who took the video and lives there, he wouldnt be aware of any obstructions to his field of view, right? There certainly arent any obstructions when he points out the area and direction of his sighting in broad daylight at 25-31 sec.

And this claim to have done a 'check of the prevailing winds at several altitudes'- how do you know what direction these lights are travelling?

No, of course, it must be Chinese lanterns....

Thunda
Ah, I see, so we have gone from wind blowing the 'flames' 'almost' out, only to re-ignite (just that one though- not any of the ones around it!) to buildings/trees etc obscuring said light, then the alleged 'lantern' passing the obstruction and becoming visible again. Hmmm. And obviously, the guy who took the video and lives there, he wouldnt be aware of any obstructions to his field of view, right? There certainly arent any obstructions when he points out the area and direction of his sighting in broad daylight at 25-31 sec.

And this claim to have done a 'check of the prevailing winds at several altitudes'- how do you know what direction these lights are travelling?

No, of course, it must be Chinese lanterns....

So you know the EXACT field of view of his camera phone then, so please give us the info!!!

Thunda
Ok- to all the Chinese lantern enthusiasts, here is the one undeniable reason why these are not Chinese lanterns.

Chinese lanterns are lit on the ground, are then visible for a few minutes, then go out. You can usually see them in a line, coming up from the ground as they are lit and released.

They never, ever, just 'appear' in the sky, and they certainly never go out, then re-appear,

Yes they do. Whenever they are occluded by some foreground object. For example: buildings, trees, telephone poles, mist, fog, clouds.

reply to post by wmd_2008


Well, he clearly points out the direction he filmed the lights at the stated time- certainly accurately enough to see there are no huge obstructions to his field of view.

But hey, it wouldnt matter what I said, you obviously have made your mind up as to what you think you see, and Im really not up for bickering about it.

As Ive said, Im quite sure many alleged UFO videos are Chinese lanterns, but I dont think there is enough information here to do anything but guess as to what is in the video, and personally, having seen Chinese lanterns many, many times, I dont think that is what we are looking at here.

Thunda
And this claim to have done a 'check of the prevailing winds at several altitudes'- how do you know what direction these lights are travelling?

Because I located the spot in the parking lot in Ashburn, VA near Dulles through clever use of something called Google Maps, the internet and my grey matter.

The daylight shot showed several landmarks which along with his testimony about the direction they were travelling and other facts provided by the TV station (which I contacted, imagine THAT!?!) allowed me to locate his sighting location.

I then did a search through winds aloft data for the date and time he saw his objects.

DUDE this is BASIC UFO RESEARCH. And has been since the 1950s (well except for the Google Maps part).

No, of course, it must be Chinese lanterns....

Obviously you have an almost religious need to believe they are something other than that. But your belief does not equate to truth.

Reality typically doesn't care what we believe. Nor do Chinese Lanterns blowing in the wind.

Keeping score?

Grey Matter 1 - Grey Aliens 0

Thunda
reply to post by wmd_2008

 

Well, he clearly points out the direction he filmed the lights at the stated time- certainly accurately enough to see there are no huge obstructions to his field of view.

DOH that's why I commented on his CAMERAS FIELD OF VIEW which can be very different.

That's why if he filmed from the same spot in daylight would have a better idea!

Looked and behaved like lanterns as far as I'm concerned... if you want to delude yourself into thinking they're not.. feel free.

reply to post by Thunda


Ashburn is pretty much located on a hill. It slopes down from west to east. On top of that there really aren't any open areas. There are a lot of townhouses but even the subdivisions are closely packed together. So I'm not sure what direction he was filming but no matter what there would have been houses obstructing his view of the ground and part of the sky.

Keeping score? Er, no- that would be a tad childish.....

Grey Matter 1 - Grey Aliens 0


Who said anything about 'grey aliens'? Ive never once said anything about aliens or UFO's- all Ive said is there is not enough information in the film to say definitively what we are looking at.

But again, for it to be Chinese lanterns, we have to accept that they are either being partially obscured by something or they are some type of 'self igniting' lantern. Quite a leap.........