Luminous ball over Nord, France

Summary

On February 25, 2018, a driver noticed a bright white ball in a clear, starry sky. The object appeared to move in sync with the vehicle, stopping when the car stopped. No sound was heard. The passenger recorded the phenomenon, allowing for later analysis. The case was classified as a "follower ball" optical illusion, where a celestial object is misinterpreted by a moving observer. The witness failed to recognize the star, leading to a false perception of movement parallel to the vehicle.

The recording shows how the object, actually Jupiter, seemed to move with the landscape. When the driver changed direction, the apparent position of the object also changed. A reconstruction of the case confirms that the object was not an unexplained phenomenon, but the very bright planet Jupiter that night. The GEIPAN classified the case as "A", meaning an observation of a common astronomical object. The experience illustrates how perception can deceive the observer, especially when in motion.