The Shape Changer

What was reported

At 18:20 on 26 April 1996 Willie Robb's neighbour Rita pointed out a very bright object to the north-north-west, high in the sky (the report prints an elevation of about 160 degrees). He took it for Venus, then unusually brilliant, and went off to bathe. Fifteen to twenty minutes later it was still in the same spot but showed movement at its lower left, and it then changed from an upright I-shape to an S-shape, as drawn in the newsletter's figure. The whole observation lasted about thirty minutes with no noise and no odd smell. Neighbours saw the object but not the change; when Robb turned back from speaking to them it had gone. Hind first suspected the loose tether from the shuttle Columbia but found that event was in mid-March.

What Hind made of it

She considered and rejected the shuttle Columbia tether because its date was mid-March, and notes Venus caused several misidentifications in April and May.

Explanation offered
Venus (witness's first thought); shuttle Columbia tether (ruled out by date)

In their words

• There was no noise or unusual smell pertaining to the object.

Cross references

• A Little Bit of Astronomy, this issue (14-16-1, 14-16-2)
• Natal Mercury, 12 March 1996

Source

Cynthia Hind, UFO Afrinews No 14 (July 1996), spread 13