Date: August 17, 2012
Time: Approx: 11:00 p.m. to 12:30 a.m.
Time: Approx: 11:00 p.m. to 12:30 a.m.
Brian, looks like I spotted my first UFO last night.
My apartment's located on Beach Ave facing south. It was hot in the apartment last night, so I sat on balcony to cool down while surfing net on iPod Touch. Approximate time: 11:00 p.m. to 12:30 a.m.
Glanced out over English Bay now and then, noticed usual aircraft lights from Vancouver airport and usual direction the planes were going.
Also a helicopter went past at their lower altitude. Also noticed the sky was exceptionally clear as I could see several average bright stars despite the city street light pollution.
Even though the iPod Touch screen brightness was turned down, it was fairly bright viewing it on the dark balcony.
So I was surprised (spooked actually) when a solid bright orange light suddenly appeared over English Bay heading southwest. It was at very high altitude.
'Spooked' because it was large and bright and odd-looking enough to distract my eyes from iPod Touch screen. At first I thought someone on upper floors of the apartment building had thrown some flaming item off their balcony.
Then thought maybe it was the space station flying over and reflecting the sun's orange rays from beyond the horizon well after our sunset. It was too big to be the space station.
I did spot the ISS a year or so ago on two consecutive nights, but only because I'd checked beforehand the dates when it would appear over Vancouver, so I was waiting and scanning that sky sector for it at the appointed time.
It was just a pinpoint of light, bright at first as it flew into and reflected the over the horizon long since set sun, then dimmed as it flew into the Earth's shadow and disappeared.
So I know what the ISS looks like when over Vancouver.
This object last night was not an aircraft. The light was too large and steady at that altitude to be a jet's running lights.
It wasn't flashing or blinking, nor was it red, green or white, but bright orange. There was no sound at all.
It proceeded steadily southwest then accelerated and diminished in size rapidly to a white pinpoint, then vanished.
Though wondering what it was, I dismissed it as maybe a high flying helicopter, though also doubting any chopper would fly at airliner or higher altitude and not at that speed, and even if it were that high, wouldn't appear so large.
I resumed surfing net on iPod Touch.
Then it repeated. Same object suddenly appeared over English Bay 'out of nowhere' in the same place, seemingly above Stanley Park or North Shore mountains/West Vancouver, then proceeded southwest toward Gulf Islands, accelerated, climbed slightly and diminished to a white pinpoint then disappeared.
It couldn't have been someone shining a large laser into the sky as the sky where it appeared and travelled was clear, no clouds to reflect from.
Much further away, over Vancouver Island/Gulf Islands there was some thin, misty cirrus cloud.
Thought maybe the object disappeared behind that cloud, but it was so bright it would have shone through that fine mist, indeed even when it was a pinpoint light it still shone through that thin cloud.
After about the same interval as before, maybe one minute (?) between repeat sightings, the object appeared a third time again in the same place and followed the same course, speed change - though each time it differed slightly.
The second time this happened I glanced around Beach Ave to see if anyone else was there at that hour and looking up at the object, but there wasn't anyone around, otherwise I would have shouted to them to look at the UFO.
I've lived at this location for 37 years and for some time as a hobby amusement used to listen to the aircraft shortwave band while watching planes land and take off from Vancouver airport, so I am very familiar with aircraft routes over Vancouver.
This object was travelling in a direction no aircraft has ever travelled over Vancouver and at an odd altitude and speed (s).
It didn't make an appearance to return to the point where it initially appeared, but once it appeared further out over Georgia Strait briefly hovering then simply disappeared. It then reappeared in the same place over English Bay/Stanley Park side and followed the same previous trajectory.
It seemed to be the exact same object, but the explanation for three separate identical appearances/routes could be explained by there being three identical objects flying the exact same route.
Again, due to their size I expected to hear engine sounds if they were aircraft, but likely due to the high altitude there was no sound at all.
Like I said, I would likely have thought the object (s) were aircraft if they'd been dimmer at that height, and certainly if there'd been engine sound, but the object's light was large and bright and oddly moving enough to distract my peripheral vision from the iPod Touch screen to look up at it.
In 37 years living at this spot I have never seen anything like it that could explain what it/they was/were.
Here is a rough sketch of the shape. It wasn't a solid square, but square/rectangular with rounded corners and seemed to have a dark area in the middle.
It happened so fast and I was so stunned I didn't even grab the binoculars or camera to catch it. Likely couldn't have caught it even if I'd had the camera ready and waiting for it, or if I'd known it was going to appear.
Only other explanation I can think of is it may have been a high-flying (US, Russia, China whatever) stealth jet. But it doesn't quite explain how it can accelerate so fast to a pinpoint, then reappear in the same spot out of nowhere!
Anyone else see this last night?
If you have seen anything like this in the same area please be kind enough to contact Brian Vike at: sighting@telus.net with the details of your sighting. All personal information is kept confidential.
Also, please feel free to send in your sightings that have happened years ago. So many of these older sightings are nothing short of amazing.
The Vike Factor (Brian Vike) http://the-v-factor-paranormal.blogspot.com/
The Vike Factor 2 (Brian Vike) http://the-v-factor-paranormal-2.blogspot.ca/
