The catalog
Sightings
Witness reports, held as-reported. Each entry keeps its source, its coordinates where the record has them, and its place in the larger pattern.
3,749 entries
October 7, 2023 · 8:20 PM · LIGHT
Peoria, IL
On October 7th, 2023 my daughters, best friend and I were making smores in the backyard and I looked up and noticed a light and said “what is that”. We all looked in the sky and see behind the clouds was a light. It looked like a flashlight was being shined in the sky, then more started to appear in various speeds and patterns. We eventually went inside after taking videos and pictures because we were scared. [NUFORC annotation: Searchlight - Possible]
October 5, 2023 · 11:00 PM · LIGHT
Chicago, IL
On the evening of October 5th, 2023 at approximately 0400Z while flying a Citation Latitude business Jet from KTEB to KMDW, I noticed strange lights above our aircraft at approximately the 2 o'clock high position over the Lake Michigan area. We were cruising at FL430 and approximately Mach .76 when I noticed the lights; they appeared as stars but they were maneuvering rapidly, changing direction and speed in multiple planes of movement. There were approximately five lights and they would maneuver, change brightness (may have been directional lights pointing toward and away from us; unsure), and fly in what looked to be a repeated formation. This activity appeared to be cyclical in nature. This was very odd to me, as Starlink satellites and similar objects in an orbit do not change speed and direction in that manner. I observed it for several seconds before commenting to my Captain that he should take a look. He quickly gained sight of them and concurred that he had never seen anything like it. We estimated the objects altitude to be FL600 or above; it was difficult to tell as they appeared to be 50-100 miles away from us but they were definitely well above our altitude. Our position at the time of initial visual observation of the objects was east of the GSH navaid on the V451. The weather was completely clear at our altitude and above us with a layer of overcast clouds below at around FL300. The moon had not yet risen so the only lights in the sky were stars and other aircraft which were easily discernable and generally co-altitude or below us. While we could not explain the lights, I queried ATC as to whether there was any military activity in that area. They replied in the negative, so I asked more specifically if the R-6903 restricted area over Lake Michigan was active. They said that it was not. Neither my Captain nor myself could explain these lights, and we witnessed the activity for approximately 30 minutes before we began our descent into KMDW and had to focus on the arrival and approach. We discussed it as a crew and continued with our tour. Approximately three days later, on the morning of October 9th at approximately 0730Z we saw the lights again while flying east from KSJC to KLUK. We were again at FL410 and in the proximity of Peoria, IL at the time of the sighting. My captain noticed the lights first (the same captain from the previous flight) and brought them to my attention. They were in the same general region, over the Great Lakes area. Multiple pilots had commented on the light coming from Venus on guard frequency (121.5) but it was quickly explained to them that it was a planet. I made a transmission on guard asking if anyone could see the strange lights we were witnessing and got several replies. Initially they were dismissed as Starlink, but once multiple pilots admitted to seeing them there was a consensus that it was not Starlink and no explanation was offered. Pilots discussing this phenomena switched to 123.45 frequency to avoid cluttering the guard frequency. At that point, one crew admitted to seeing these lights multiple times generally in the same area. One crew could see them from the Tennesee area and another crew was in a Gulfstream at FL450 closer to the lights and said they were well above their altitude. All in all, the lights were viewed by multiple professional pilots and none could offer any explanation for them. Again, we witnessed the lights for approximately 30 minutes until we began our arrival into Cincinnati. The weather was clear that night with a rising moon later in the flight. I still have no explanation for what we saw. I have approximately 3000 hours of flight time in various aircraft, mostly military as I was an MV-22 pilot in the Marine Corps and was an instructor for Night Vision Device flying. I am aware of most atmospheric phenomena and have seen multiple Space X launches and satellites from both the ground and in flight. My Captain has over 20 years of flying experience. Neither of us had any explanation for the lights. I am confident what we saw would be classified as Unidentified Aerial Phenomena.
October 5, 2023 · 8:00 PM · DISK
Bridgeport, IL
About 8:00 pm at night after, picking up pizza for dinner, my daughter in law was driving west on highway 250 towards Sumner, Illinois from Bridgeport , Illinois. As she approached the turn off for Hopewell cemetery she noticed unusually bright lights in the field to her right. Slowing down to get a better view of the phenomenon, she was shocked and shaken when she realized that it was a very large disk shaped object 75-150 feet in diameter slowly moving in a circular pattern around the north end of the open field. The object had a dark surface and was ringed by multicolored lights around the periphery of said object. The disk-like shape was only discernible because of the lights around the outer edge. The object was moving just above the tree-line. The lights around the edge were moving in a fixed pattern around the object. She described the motion of the lights as the motion of chasing lights on a theater or advertising marquee. Until the moment of her sighting she was a hardcore skeptic. When she called us to relate her sighting, she was very shaken and displayed a reaction of someone who has just had their perception of reality destroyed. She slowed down observed the object intently enough that she totally forgot to control the car she was driving. She crossed the centerline and ran off the shoulder of the road before regaining control. According to her, the near accident snapped her back to her senses and in a panic she sped away. It was only when she reached the safety of her own home that she realized that she was so shaken by the experience that she completely forgot to take pictures.
October 2, 2023 · 2:02 PM · FORMATION
Taylorville, IL
20 white craft with forward swept wings flying in formation with no sound at all at a fairly high altitude, probably 15,000 to 20,000 ft.
September 24, 2023 · 9:05 PM · DISK
Centralia, IL
Driving into Centralia on US-51 from Irvington, I looked to my left (west) and saw lights in a slight diagonal curved row. We pulled over on the side of the road (near Country Bobs) and watched as the seemingly stagnant object floated, then rotated slightly, and started to shut lights off shut off before it disappeared in a blink of an eye. While watching it, you could see a faint outline of a craft in the dark sky. This all happened within seconds. We did not hear any unusual sounds. The area that this happened in is mostly farmland with scattered houses.
September 24, 2023 · 6:15 PM · DISK
Naperville, IL
We were looking up at the sky when we noticed a black disc-like object slowly moving through the sky, but was moving in a straight line at first. Then, it quickly shot to the side, then shot to the other side. Not sure if this is a drone capability, but it wasn't like anything we've ever seen.
September 18, 2023 · 6:55 AM · OVAL
Probable conventionalElburn, IL
Appears to be a powered aircraft with three contrails. Flying at a really high altitude towards the northwest. I've seen aircraft at high altitude fly over before but really in the skies above my home... this thing was really weird and it had no discernible wings or anything which you normally see. I suspect it was just due to the reflection of the Sun but who the hell knows, its 2023, the world is a nut house so I figured I'd share it maybe it's something, maybe not. I have photographs that I took on a pixel 6 pro, I can share them. I have 10 photos. [NUFORC annotation: Aircraft - Probable]
September 16, 2023 · 4:50 PM · CROSS
Chicago, IL
Item, larger than an eagle, traveling eastward (and potentially a little north or south), not moving upwards or downwards in the sky. It appeared to be flying lower than planes that were landing Midway Airport. It was further south of the planes landing. [NUFORC annotation: Drone - Possible]
September 14, 2023 · 11:55 PM · FIREBALL
Wheaton, IL
On Thursday, September 14 at approximately 11:55 pm while I was headed home, I was driving west on Butterfield Road right before crossing Naperville Road in Wheaton when I witnessed a giant, neon green fireball/sphere-like object with irregular/jagged edges leaving a long trail of green behind it flying angled downward from the sky traveling south to north - right behind/above a stripmall where TJ Maxx and other stores are. I had my windows rolled up, but didn’t hear any sound. It disappeared behind the buildings and I couldn’t tell how close it was, but it seemed like it was right in the sky in front of me up ahead. I heard no sound of impact. The whole event was only a few seconds as it traveled extremely fast. It was the most surreal and bizarre thing I’ve ever seen. Only 1 other car was driving next to me at the time with no others on the road.
September 13, 2023 · 11:10 PM · LIGHT
Mount Vernon, IL
First, I thought it was a star, then it disappeared so I figured maybe it had wenrt behind the cloud, then I thought that was quick for a cloud! So I thought plane, then I realized there were no clouds in the sky so I went for my camera when I was fairly certain it was nothing normal what so ever! I was afraid I would get it but as though it was putting on a show it didn’t disappoint! I didn’t realize second craft until my wife brought it to my attention then I discovered that it popped up at least 3 more times then I realized! So amazing! [NUFORC annotation: Starlink - Possible]
September 13, 2023 · 8:17 PM · LIGHT
Chatham, IL
I arrived at home at 8:15 and looked north over the town of Chatham, Il and saw 8 lights flying low over the city. Not in formation but moving in the same general direction. I took 2 videos and 1 still picture. They appears very bright and orange. And they disappears one at a time as they made their way to the southwest. They did not zip away, but just kind of disappears after a few minutes. One at a time. I called my wife who was inside and had her come out and look. I did not hear any noise associated with them. No rotor noise or anything like that. We were both kind of dumbfounded.
September 13, 2023 · 7:57 PM · LIGHT
Palatine, IL
I saw a bright white light traveling slowly with no sound from west to east. The object had no blinking lights indicating a conventional airplane. I recorded it for a period to show what I had witnessed. Using a plane tracking app shows no registered aircraft in the vicinity. Looking at the object through binoculars didn’t provide any more detail, the white light was just larger. I can’t say what it was but I know that it wasn’t an drone or an airplane.
September 9, 2023 · 1:55 AM · UNKNOWN
Hinckley, IL
At approximately 1:55 a.m. on Saturday, September 9, I decided to head off to bed after watching television. I am a night owl, so it is normal for me to be wide awake late into the evening and early morning hours. Upon laying down and looking directly out an open west window one foot away from the bed, I noticed an unknown object with intense bright blue light surrounding it flying erratically using sudden darting movements high in the sky west of Hinckley. I immediately got out of bed and watched it maneuver for the next 15 minutes. I couldn't take my eyes off of it. The most stunning movement was how it literally appeared to fall or drop from the sky at blinding speed. But then it then came to a complete stop and remained in one place. It darted back up into the sky, and in general continued to dart at will around the sky west of Hinckley. Occasionally, the object would completely disappear and then suddenly reappear a few seconds later. The night was clear with no clouds, so there was nothing to obscure the object from visibility. The next thing that occurred was simply amazing! As it started to move east across Hinckley on the north side of town, the object suddenly became TWO unknown objects, each surrounded with bright blue light. Together, in absolutely precise tandem, they flew to the east at high speed. In order to continue watching, I had to quickly run from the west side of the house to the east side. When I arrived on the deck on the east side of the house, the two objects had either blended back into one, or one of them had left the area. The remaining blue object then flew out of sight south of Hinckley. Absolutely stunned by the unbelievable sharp turns it would make at high speed, I continued to remain on the deck waiting to see if it might return. And it did! It flew back from the south where it had previously gone and proceeded further east. I did not see it again although I continued to monitor the sky for quite some time after. I'll do my best to try to describe the speed at which this object moved. Imagine using your finger to point up into the sky on the west side of Hinckley. Then quickly swing your finger all the way to the east side of Hinckley. In about one second the object moved across the Hinckley sky before coming to a complete stop, changing direction, and flying off again. When it suddenly dropped from the sky at the beginning of the sighting, it happened so quickly that I thought it was going to hit the ground. But no, it simply stopped mid-air before it decided to dart off into another direction. The objects were incredibly easy to see in the sky due to the intensity of the blue light surrounding each of them. For as high into the sky as they were, they must have been fairly large objects to be seen so easily from my location on the ground. I thought about alerting the local police of the sighting, but I simply didn't want to take my eyes away from what I was viewing as I may never see something like this again in my lifetime. And since I imagine a sighting such as this would be perceived as unbelievable, I decided to report what I saw on this website instead. I have never reported, nor experienced, anything such as this ever before.
September 4, 2023 · 2:30 AM · TRIANGLE
Chicago, IL
I saw a black triangle with white lights on front edge from backyard very high with a star looking thing above and back from it no lights underneath the lights where pointing toward downtown Chicago.It and star disappeared after 10 minutes .It hovered still no sound. I think it was in our orbit very high in the sky.
September 1, 2023 · 10:33 PM · SPHERE
West Alton, IL
Capture 9-1-23 2 Hello. My name is (deleted). I lived in West Alton, MO in 2007. And that's when I had my experience. It was in September sometime. I can't remember the exact date. However. My boyfriend at the time had just gotten home from work. It was around 10:30 at night. I would. Take a bath at night so i wouldnt have to In the morning so I wouldn't have to get up early. Cause I left early to go to work. So it was about 10:30 at night. He had just gotten home. He worked for Modot. At the time. And I saw these lights from my bathroom window. I noticed them when I went in there because they were moving erratically and doing strange things, so. I stopped and looked out my window and was watching them. There was three of them. Changing colors and they were just above the tree tops. They were bouncing up and down like a ball would on top of the tree tops. And I was like, whoa. What in the heck are those things? So I called my boyfriend. Asked to come and take a look at these lights. I wanted to see if he was seeing what I was seeing. So I sat there and watched the lights more. And waited for him to come in there well. I got tired of waiting, so I went in there and he had fell asleep in the chair. So I decided that. I was going to try and take my time. In gathering my things for my shower. And the reason for me to do that was i figured if I went back into the bathroom and the lights were gone then I could just write it off as you know like Oh, it was nothing But if the lights were still there, then I knew I was seeing what I was seeing. So I took about 20 minutes dragging my feet hoping that the lights were. Gone. So I come back in the bathroom. And. Put my things down on my. Vanity. And I look out the window. And I don't see the lights. So I'm thinking OK. Oh, they're gone. OK, so. My bathtub is next to my window. And I go to turn my bathtub on. And noticed something bright above my house. And that's when I looked out the window. Only I was close to the window. I could see that the lights that I was watching were almost on top of my house. They were huge. They were really bright. And I was freaking out. Going Oh my gosh, I wanted to go out there. And take a better look at them. But realized that my boyfriend was asleep and I didn't exactly know what they were. So. I stopped. And I remained trying to see them. Next thing I know 5 1/2 hours later because when I came to it was about. 5:00 in the morning. Oh, I came to in the shower with no clothes on. Um, no recollection of what happened, but the last thing I remember. Was staring at the lights out the window. That's the last thing I remember and I freaked out. Ran into the to the other room where my boyfriend was and jumped on him and said Oh my God, what happened to me? What happened to me? Why is it 5:00 in the morning? And he was like, Oh my God, I don't know, I was asleep. So we never really talked about it much. But it really messed with me a lot. The next day I noticed there were. Three dots on my arm. That looked like puncture wounds. In a form of a triangle. I was like, Oh my. So after that, it seemed like there were some strange things that were going on. Like voices. I was hearing voices outside and I didn't have any neighbors. It it scared me so much that I went and purchased 4 security cameras. Because I lived out there alone, next to the river it was disinheartening and so. It freaked me out so bad that I didn't think about it or talk about it for a long time. And then? The one time that I did start to investigate it, I came across Mufons Contactie Questionnaire. I believe that's the. Website I went to. And filled out the questionnaire and got a call from. An investigator wanting to come out five minutes after I turned in the report. The investigator wanted to come out there and do a field investigation and that Instilled in me that it was a real deal. What was going on with me? Um, so. I freaked out, said no. I didn't want anybody coming out doing a field investigation. It just freaked me out altogether. Because I couldn't believe what was happening to me was real. It was quite confusing, however. I ended up. Making another report. A few years later. Nobody called me right away. They did contact me however, by e-mail I think, and wanted to talk to me over the phone, which I didn't wanna do at the time either. To this day. I still have no recollection of what has happened to me at for all those hours that went missing. I was doing some research trying to find out if there was anybody in this state. Around that time, that may have experienced the same thing that I had. But I have not found any reports. Just a few reports in that area of seeing lights along the river there. Around the same time. I tried contacting the lady, but I've never got any response from her who reported seeing something similar around the same time as I did. Oh, don't know if it freaked her out, but. This is my report. Thank you.
September 1, 2023 · 5:08 PM · SPHERE
Chicago, IL
https://www.flightaware.com/live/flight/AAL1614 On September 1st, 2023 just after 5 PM and in sunlight, I was a passenger on AA flight #1614. My flight was westbound, after banking 180 degrees over Lake Michigan and upon final approach, I observed a smoky silver metallic object headed East, toward the lake, at a slightly lower altitude, approximately 300' North of AA#1614. I estimate the altitude to be 8-10,000'. We were South of Howard Street and the object was North of my flight. We were flying just west of the Evanston McDonald's restaurant on Howard Street. The object was moving at around the same speed as my flight in the opposite direction. The front of the object appeared to be "cloaked" and had a bright rear red glow. The cloaking was almost pixelated, like "Predator" character (movie) in the front only. The object operated as if it was a low altitude satellite or a moving "aeronautical buoy" (as if such a thing existed). I saw it pass by our plane but it did not react to my flight's presence. I was seated in seat #30F. I had my window shade up, but most window shades were down on the right side of my flight. I did not report to flight crew. I told my family and friends. I have excellent long range vision, but could not completely focus on the front of the object. I could focus on rear red glow. This was not a drone/UAV. I was not viewing this through my plane's jetwash. I fly regularly for work and can identify landmarks on the ground with regularity. I will never forget what I saw.
August 31, 2023 · 1:01 PM · TRIANGLE
South Beloit, IL
I saw this formation which I thought was seagulls, but then I noticed a jet flying at an altitude that I estimated to be 20k feet. So, I didn't think it was birds. The formation consisted of 12 craft. They all moved at the same speed, and in the same direction. The tail section looked like a v, and was gray in color. The front section, looked like a square, with the sides shaved off. It was white in color. I know I am not doing a very good job of explaining what I saw, but please bare with me. As I watched the formation, it took a turn to the north and disappeared. Then it appeared a few minutes later to the left of where it had disappeared. It continued to repeat the formation and the disappearing for about seven minutes, then it went away. I drew a picture of what I saw if you want it.
August 30, 2023 · 9:57 PM · FORMATION
Belvidere, IL
I am visiting family in Belvidere, Illinois. I currently reside in Salem Oregon
August 25, 2023 · 11:00 PM · SPHERE
Oregon, IL
My girlfriend and I were star watching last night around 11pm. Out of no where these orbs would appear orange then brighten and dim and zig zag around. Some would stay stationary like blending with the stars and then it would slowly move and then they seemed like they knew we were watching them so more would appear and we were so amazed and shocked we didn't film or take pictures we are believers so we just took it all in and enjoyed the experience but now I'm a little concerned. Then these like triangle drones would appear with a green and white/red light they were silent too. They would hover and blink bright sort of replicating an airplane. But I've seen planes my whole life living in this rural area. These were not planes. I didn't even want to report this but I'm actually a little concerned. These things knew we were watching them it was creepy. They mimic stars but then dart around. And the triangle craft drone things were silent not like a plane. I hope this helps the data out there somehow. I've seen this a few times now this summer but it's getting to be every night. I don't want to cause a stir in my town but it's concerning but fascinating. Please give me an answer.
August 24, 2023 · 3:12 PM · EGG
Chicago, IL
My girlfriend and I had just finished shopping at Costco in the University Village in Chicago. Shortly leaving the store I noticed what I believed to be a plane from a distance. I assumed it was a plane because we see many planes land to OHare and Midway. However, looking more closely at the airplane I noticed that I was round and did not appear to look like a plane. I pointed out the object to my girlfriend while we were driving and she insisted that I record it. I filmed a couple of seconds of the craft before it became obstructed by a building near us. The craft seemed to be pretty far from us but zooming in on the video I noticed that the craft was clearly round. I don’t know if this was a drone or blimp because it appeared to be much larger and going much more fast.
August 23, 2023 · 8:45 PM · TRIANGLE
Rochelle, IL
I was on my backyard deck with my dog just as a clear night settled in. I noticed a triangled red light set just above the horizon from the east...as I watched it, it began to rise in the sky (or had been moving straight at me) and began flying at me at a quick speed. As it started to fly directly over there were at first 2 triangles, red in color, then it looked like there were 3 red triangles flying side by side overhead. As I was watching there were 2 triangles flying directly back east a bit more to the north. I was a bit shaken because I had never seen anything like these things before. I ran in to get my phone to get pics if it came back and accidentally (or my phone had)woke my husband. He eventually came out as another set of red-lighted triangles (2) flew overhead from the east but he said it was a plane. It didn't look like any plane I have ever seen or ever flew that low east to west over our home. They were huge. And we live northwest of a small airport and Interstate 88. As that one disappeared, I saw one more set maybe a mile south of us fly west. Was there noise? I couldn't say for sure because of the noisy interstate but there was no normal hum of an engine had any other plane flew over to the airport nor was there a jet engine sound as I would suspect of a plane that large (if it was one). Very strange, and may have not been anything BUT it was unlike anything I have ever seen in 66 years on earth. Lasted about 5-8 min maybe and to be honest it could have been closer to 9 PM.
August 16, 2023 · 8:30 AM · LIGHT
Chicago, IL
We saw a small light in the sky that was red and green. We thought it was an airplane but it was just hovering. It would quickly disappear by turning the lights off and then reappear minutes later. [NUFORC annotation: Aircraft - Possible]
August 12, 2023 · 11:45 PM · LIGHT
Shorewood, IL
I first noticed the light when I was looking up at the stars, as at first I thought it was a very bright star. It started to hover in a circular motion and sometimes move in quick bursts, but would generally stay in the same spot. My backyard is underneath a flight path and this light was well above any planes flying over that night and stayed in this general spot for the entire time I was outside (~30 minutes). This light did not change colors but would have a rhythmic blinking pattern.
August 12, 2023 · 9:45 PM · LIGHT
Elgin, IL
These objects seem like floating stars, only larger & brighter. Prior to last night, I saw only one (in the east and southeast sky). It was there as long as I stood looking at it, each time I observed it. At first, it seemed like it could be a drone with a large bright light. However, numerous times it made quick movements up and down or side to side. It is unlike any aircraft, i.e. helicopter, jet, etc. going from point A to B. It just hovers in the same spot, like a balloon, but is unlike a balloon in that it makes those quick movements. Last night, I saw one in the southeast sky and, for the first time, one in the western sky. Prior to that, I saw the one in the east or southeast sky almost every night when the sky is clear before going to bed (around 10 pm) and on Wednesdays when going and returning from an obligation at 1:50 to 3:10 am. Live photos are attached.