A glowing orange sphere approximately 3 feet in diameter at the treeline level startled an Iowa man as he packed his children in the car from a day at the Okoboji Boats Marina just after sunset on July 17, 2010, according to testimony from the Mutual UFO Network (MUFON) witness reporting database.
The man first thought it might be a Chinese lantern, but then had second thoughts.
"But it just kept floating there in the same place," he stated. "No sound."
Still watching the object, the man observed that the objecct "seemed to be slowly moving up and away from the tree tops moving in a very slow, pulsating sort of way, like the way a jelly fish moves through the water."
Another witness appeared on the scene and the two watched the object - which then seemed to move away at great speed.
The following is the unedited and as yet uninvestigated report filed with MUFON. Please keep in mind that most UFO reports can be explained as something natural or manmade. If Iowa MUFON State Director Jim King investigates and reports back on this case, I will release an update.
IA, July 17, 2010 - Orange glowing ball appeared just over the tree line at Okoboji Boats Marina. MUFON Case # 24687.
I was helping pack up the car from a day of sailing & playing at the marina at Okoboji Boats. It was definitly dark- sun had just set.
I'm opening the passanger car door when for some reason i looked up at the sky.
Coming across the very top of the tree line in the residential area which surrounds the marina was a deep, bright orange glowing sphere.
I'm guessing about 36-42 inches in diameter perhaps a little larger like the size of a beach ball, for example.
I immedialty shouted "look girls a chinese latern".
In my brain all i could think was that this was some sort of fireworks toy like the parachutes we shot off as children but I've never heard of chinese latern fireworks & I don't know why that popped into my head. The only chinese latern reference I know in my world is a blooming plant called a chinese latern that produces little round orange balls. That's the same shape & color as this object in the sky- so I was watching & waiting for something to happen like fireworks.
But it just kept floating there in the same place. No sound.
I turned around to see where the kids were- if they too were seeing this but they were exhausted and already in the back seat of the car. I looked back up at the sky and it seemed to be slowly moving up & away from the tree tops moving in a very slow pulsating sort of way, like the way a jelly fish moves through the water.
Suddenly a man was at my car door and we were both watching the sky again I said "chinese latern" and he looked at me as though I were crazy and repeated with a question "chinese latern???" I replied "I've got 2 kids with me so right now that's a chinese latern"
In that brief exchange I took my eyes off the object and again turned around to see the kids were still in car- their mother had her head in the trunk packing up coolers, toys etc. I couldn't have taken my eyes off it for more than a few seconds then I looked back up at the sky and it was no more than an orange dot- now super far up & away.
How could it move that fast, I asked myself. There is no way it could be that far away in 3 or 4 seconds.
But it was. I could still see the distinctive orange color but it was so far up at this point it was a mere dot in the sky. The man next to me was gone. I wish I had gotten his name.I never felt scared, just curious. I've always believed that UFO's do exist but have never thought I've seen one. Once we left parking lot I knew it was a UFO.
Comments
I saw the same thing a few days ago hovering over the Mississippi river in Bettendorf and then 15 seconds later it was gone
I saw this ufo in Missouri on August 16th around 9:00p.m. It looked and moved just as you descibed. My first thought of the object was a chinese lantern, but after watching it for a while I noticed it moved in a some what intellegent manner, it wasn't just floating. I quickly called my family outside to check it out, and they were also astonished. We watched it slowly move across the sky until it left the atmosphere. Something rather odd though was at the point where it left sight a very bright 'star' was suddenly visible and would brighten and dim slightly. I rushed inside my house to leave a post on facebook asking if anyone else saw this odd pulsating ufo. About two minutes had passed while I was inside, but as I returned to observe the activity of the light it had vanished completely. It was a very amazing sight. I truly want to understand what these things are and what they're about. They aren't seemingly threatening and are visually alluring. This was the first incident I was completely certain I'd had just witnessed an otherworldly ufo. I truly do hope to see it again.
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