Phoenix Lights

Record summary

What happened Thousands of people across Arizona reported lights on 13 March 1997. Earlier reports described a V-shaped formation moving south across the state; later video from the Phoenix area showed a row of stationary lights that appeared and disappeared near the Estrella Mountains. The later display is strongly associated with illumination flares dropped by Maryland Air National Guard aircraft over the Barry Goldwater Range, with terrain hiding the lights as they descended. The earlier moving formation is less securely documented and has been attributed to a group of conventional aircraft seen in perspective. Treating every observation and video as one giant craft collapses at least two distinct episodes. Evidence Large numbers of witnesses, home video of the later lights, aircraft and military activity records, and geometric analyses of the lights relative to terrain. Explanations considered Military illumination flares provide a strong explanation for the later Phoenix videos. Conventional aircraft in formation are a leading explanation for the earlier moving lights. What remains uncertain Witness estimates of size and distance were made against a dark sky with few reference points. The best video documents lights, not a solid object linking them together. Primary source Phoenix Lights — Wikipedia