Orange-yellow luminous ball in cloudy skies over Aveyron

Summary

On November 23, 2013, at 18:45, a witness in Aveyron observed for 15 seconds a very bright orange-yellow round object moving silently in a straight line across a cloudy sky. The trajectory was from west to southwest, but the object quickly disappeared behind the house. Although a Thai lantern was considered as a possible explanation, the area where the observation occurred is sparsely populated, and no plausible launch point was identified. Moreover, the northwesterly wind made it unlikely for a lantern to reach that location. The weather confirmed cloudy skies and strong winds. Due to the brevity of the sighting and the lack of additional testimonies, no hypothesis can be confirmed or ruled out. A ball lightning phenomenon was also considered, but it is rare during this season. The case was ultimately classified as "C" due to insufficient information.