Red line above the Sarrouilles hills seen from Tarbes

Summary

On September 5, 1976, at 7:22 AM, a resident of Tarbes observed from his upper-floor apartment a red line stretching above the Sarrouilles hills. The phenomenon remained visible for about ten minutes and there were no other witnesses. The gendarmerie investigated and concluded it was likely a weather balloon that had released its payload in a field near Soues and remained aloft. Calm winds on September 4 and 5 support that hypothesis.