2026-07-27 12:02:08
An astronomer has explained the most common phenomena which is most likely to be mistaken for a UFO.
Bob King – known as AstroBob – has given his opinion on unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP) and revealed there are plenty of everyday occurrences that can make someone think they have had a brush with extraterrestrials insisting lenticular clouds, reflections and sky lanterns have all been confused with alien spacecraft.
In a piece written for Sky and Telescope, Bob admitted he loved reading about UFOs as a child and even created his own hoax photograph by throwing a trash can lid in the air and catching it on camera.
He also revealed he once had a frosty encounter with a man who showed him a video of what he claimed was a UFO only for Bob to point out it was just a very bright star in the sky.
Bob wrote of the incident: “Once upon a time, a middle-aged gentleman attended one of my local astronomy club’s meetings.
“Excitedly, he explained he’d photographed a UFO and wanted us to see it for ourselves. He said it had to be a UFO because of its brilliance, round shape and rapid pulsations.
“As soon as the video got underway, it was obvious that the ‘UFO’ was a bright star, jerking about from unsteady hands and rhythmically moving in and out of focus as the camera’s autofocus struggled to keep the object sharp. After a few questions about time and direction of the filming, it was clear he had captured the star Sirius …
“No matter our explanations, he was convinced it had to be a UFO … He collected the video and walked out in a huff.”
Bob went on to explain some of the most common things that are mistaken for UFOs, adding that Sirius is one of the most “commonly reported UFOs sightings along with Venus”.
He explained airplane contrails can also be confused with space craft as well as lenticular clouds, writing: “These UFO-like clouds form when fast moving air blows over mountains or hills, creating waves in the atmosphere similar to those created when you toss a pebble in a pond.
“Their saucer shapes can be both beautiful and evocative. Other atmospheric phenomena confused for UFOs include sundogs and related halo phenomena.”
Bob also pointed out flashing lights on planes, contrails from rocket launches, auroras and even reflections from indoor lights can create the illusion of a UFO.
He added: “Internal reflections of bright light sources — car headlights, ceiling fixtures — in multi-paned glass, especially against twilight, can appear single, double, or multiply-imaged, as if the source is hovering in the distance.”
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