On the night of September 10th, 2013, I found myself gazing into the darkened skies above Eau Claire, Wisconsin. At precisely 10:15 PM, my attention was seized by an otherworldly spectacle: eight to ten vivid orange lights emerged from the west, moving in silent formation across the heavens. These lights followed a lead glow, creating an eerie procession that seemed to defy earthly explanation.
My view was somewhat limited, the trees standing sentinel both east and west, but the lights blazed far above the broken cloud layer—estimated around 3,000 feet. Their glow was intense, brighter than any terrestrial aircraft or known phenomenon I have ever witnessed. Alongside the orange orbs, a faint, ghostly white light trailed behind the second or third in the formation, resembling a distant star, but moving with the group.
The entire display lasted approximately thirty minutes, appearing and disappearing in waves over the skies. Each time, no sound betrayed their passage—not even the faintest whisper of engines or wind disturbance. Movement was too swift and seamless to attribute to mundane sources like lanterns or drones.
This silent celestial ballet left me with an unsettling, lingering sense of mystery. The memory of those orange lights hanging, drifting silently overhead, remains etched in my mind—an enigmatic reminder that sometimes, the night sky holds secrets still beyond our grasp.