Giant orange ball

[jumpinjackflash]

Ok, I know that this has been discussed before but last night as I looked out of window, I saw a huge glowing orange ball thing really high up in the sky. It looked like a hot air balloon without the basket! I know that last year some Chinese lantern things were seen floating about ED and they were mentioned on a previous thread, but I saw them and this was much bigger. What surprised me the most was how high it got. Anyway what was it?! It's definitely not one of those advertising balloon things you see around.

[jaybee82]

The moon?

[jumpinjackflash]

no!

[jaybee82]

Sorry, couldn't resist ;-)

[jumpinjackflash]

I told everyone at work and they all think I must have been pi55ed - which I wasn't!

I cannot have been the only one that saw it!

[silverfox]

Are you sure it wasn't a cheese puff stuck on the end of your nose which you'd been scoffing while watching The Street?

[red devil]

had you previously been staring at a light bulb for an unhealthily long time?..

[HAL9000]

You are not alone - check this out > Orange Ball In The Sky

[????]

At some point in May and for almost all of June I too saw a big orange thing in the sky on an almost daily basis - it started around 5am and got higher and higher until noonish then it slowly moved downwards disappearing at about 9pmish. I also noticed how hot and generally pleasant it was suring this phenomenum. It now seems to have disappeared.

[jumpinjackflash]

silverfox - i don't like cheesy puffs nor Corrie and Red Devil no I wasn't staring at lightbulbs however it was shaped slightly like a lightbulb

[Horsebox]

???? Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> At some point in May and for almost all of June I

> too saw a big orange thing in the sky on an almost

> daily basis - it started around 5am and got higher

> and higher until noonish then it slowly moved

> downwards disappearing at about 9pmish. I also

> noticed how hot and generally pleasant it was

> suring this phenomenum. It now seems to have

> disappeared.

Sounds like withdrawl symptoms. Get back on the Stella immediately.

[woofmarkthedog]

Cataracts

[lenk]

Yet abother sad indication of how this area has gone to the dogs.

I lived in Manchester for 10 years, and never once saw this deadly orange ball in the sky.

[woofmarkthedog]

lenk Wrote:

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> Yet abother sad indication of how this area has

> gone to the dogs.

>

> I lived in Manchester for 10 years, and never once

> saw this deadly orange ball in the sky.

-------------------------------------------------

That's Manchester for you!

[caffine addict]

A plane??

[Jeremy]

I don't think a plane could resemble a "huge glowing orange ball".

[Loz]

A flying clown? You gotta watch out for them in ED, you know...

[jaybee82]

I'd hope not

[JetSetWilly]

Jeremy Wrote:

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> I don't think a plane could resemble a "huge

> glowing orange ball".

hmm, not too sure about that, concorde did a fairly good impression.

[mockney piers]

Quids' answer sounds the most likely, but barring that a v quick swizz and this looks a candidate:

Based upon the description you give I would say its highly likely that you saw a rather nice example of a fireball. This is the name given to a meteor that achieves a visual magnitude of -4 (very close to the planet Venus) or brighter. Brightness is often perceived in terms of size - hence your description of a tenth the size of the Moon.

It is not unusual with fireballs to see some fragmentation of the actual meteroid as it enters the atmosphere and breaks up - there are sometimes even reports of sonic booms like thunder.

There are no notable meteor showers going on but then fireballs are almost always sporadics (random meteors). It would be well worth your while getting in touch with Alistar McBeath at the Society for Popular Astronomy (www.popastro.com) who co-ordinates their meteor section. It's quite likely that other people did see it and not necessarily just around the Leeds area. With a few observations from different locations it is often possible to work out a trajectory (actual path)

 

[nissaki]

My friend Suzy saw something similar fly over overhill road about 9pm and she was sober

[Laroon]

um, a space station is currently orbiting... it could have been that... supposed to be pretty bright...

[Sporthuntor]

ha ha ha this thread is now on the google search linked above

[KidKruger]

I may have been responsible for the chinese lanterns last year which are mentioned at the start of this thread, I think I'd come back from a festival and told the kids about the lanterns, so we set a couple off before their bedtime, then ended up with them in their pyjamas following the lanterns through the streets of SE22 until the lanterns disappeared East. I hope they didnae cause concern at the time !

[AuraCaught]

KidKruger Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> I may have been responsible for the chinese

> lanterns last year which are mentioned at the

> start of this thread, I think I'd come back from a

> festival and told the kids about the lanterns, so

> we set a couple off before their bedtime, then

> ended up with them in their pyjamas following the

> lanterns through the streets of SE22 until the

> lanterns disappeared East. I hope they didnae

> cause concern at the time !

Please let us know when you'll be doing it again this year. We loved watching them last year.