Atmospheric reentry in France 1978

Summary

On February 21, 1978, between 20:45 and 21:00, hundreds of witnesses across various regions of France observed a luminous phenomenon moving rapidly across the sky. It was described as a spherical object the size of a football, followed by a bright greenish trail turning reddish. Most witnesses saw it moving quickly toward the west, disappearing either instantly or at the horizon. With 78 documented testimonies, the time coincidence and wide geographical spread suggest a single high-altitude event. The GEIPAN classified it as a known atmospheric phenomenon, such as the reentry of a meteoroid. The short duration and elongated shape are typical of such events. Today, with automatic cameras and online records, similar cases are resolved more easily. A recent example from 2016 shows a clear similarity to this 1978 case.