[X] My Assistant

[Ant103]

Good evening.

During the night from the 25 to the 26th of December (this month), some observers have seen a "triangle" in the sky.
Link to the topic on the most famous astronomy forum of the France : http://www.astrosurf.com/ubb/Forum1/HTML/001888.html

And a quick traduction of the first post :

[in the south of France]The night yesterday, 25th december 2006, at the middle of the night, I observed a strange thing...
I began to take my first photography on M81 galaxy when I've remarked a non-observed phenomena before this.
At the left of Orion, at the top of Pi Orionis in the Orion shield, stands a perfect isocel triangle with hard edges (vapor consistence...). It luminosity was equivalent to a persitent track made by a big meteor.
This form, around 4° sized, stayed 2 or 3 minutes with the same brightness and the "triangle" began to dilated himself from East to West but not from North to South. During its enlargment, its brightness began to fall and this form slowly disapear and wasn't visible one quarter of hour later.
I hope that other guys have seen this thing too...

If anybody have an hypothesis?

A drawing of the scene :


This phenomena was seen from the Alpes Bavaroises and the Forêt-Noire by other observers.

Hypothesis formulated :
- a meteor rest but the altitude of this may have to be produce at very high altitude to be see from very different point in the same area of the sky (near Orion).
- a satellite ergols explusion?
- a rocket?

That's why I post this in this section because it can concern a engine around the earth.

All information are welcome .

[djellison]

You'll have to help me with the French.

Did this appear for one night, or multiple nights? How long did it last - how bright was it and a lot of the links on that link you give seem dead.

If I had to guess - I'd go for venting from a discarded upper stage.