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[great lakes]

I see it every year as I'm a sailor on the great lakes and it is. A little north east have checked it out numerous times with binnoculars and it seems to be spinning one or two or 3 objects 'red white and blue ' could be refraction from the sun coming over th horizon before it hits our eyes or through our atmosphere destorted but still can't get a definate scientific explanition and funny how it gets no media it's right there haha you can't miss it

[Centaur]

Mar 19, 2015 16:40:35 GMT -6 great lakes said:

I see it every year as I'm a sailor on the great lakes and it is. A little north east have checked it out numerous times with binnoculars and it seems to be spinning one or two or 3 objects 'red white and blue ' could be refraction from the sun coming over th horizon before it hits our eyes or through our atmosphere destorted but still can't get a definate scientific explanition and funny how it gets no media it's right there haha you can't miss it

Welcome to the discussion group, Great Lakes. If a phenomenon gets no media attention, it's normally because it is not something unusual.

We regular members of the message board would love to offer an explanation for you. But we need some basic testimony from you, the witness.

Please provide:

1) Your location during the sighting with more precision
2) The date and time (with zone) of your sighting
3) The azimuth and altitude of the object (I assume a sailor knows the meaning of those terms.)

If it appears annually in the same direction at the same clock time, then it is almost certainly a fixed star. Your answers should allow us to determine which one. Meanwhile, the atmospheric prismatic dispersion that results in a star's twinkling and color shifts has been thoroughly discussed earlier in this thread.  

[BROOX]

I spent two hours outside tonight [3|20|2015] looking at this thing. Here's what I can tell you that I have observed on several occasions now:

1.) It appears very mundane, like any star at first glance.
2.) On closer inspection, it is different from the other stars, in that it blinks. It resembles Sirius in this aspect, though it is clearly strobing interesting coloration; mainly red, white, blue, and green, though other colors as well.
3.) ON CLOSER INSPECTION, and I mean like a deep quiet almost meditative singular focus on this object, it MOVES. It stays roughly in the same small patch of sky, but within the area I have observed it performing small spirals, cursive-like script movements, and back-forth patterns.

This is extremely bizarre, but if I go locate the object and stare intently at it, this happens infallibly everytime. What is sad and difficult for me, as someone who is open to a more profound reality than any text book presents, is being able to point this out to my friends/family, and for them to not be able to see it. Not being able to see is a condition of the mind, the third eye being blind.

If you can only FOCUS, with your whole being (soul) on this object, you will clearly see that it is intelligently controlled. I am not a govt. shill or some kind of disinfo guy, I am a deeply curious and profoundly inspired Earthling.

[e-mail]

[Paulie pchris00]

My guess is that your family & friends don't see it because they have not eaten the magic mushrooms.

But what do I know?

[Centaur]

Mar 20, 2015 23:48:18 GMT -6 BROOX said:

I spent two hours outside tonight [3|20|2015] looking at this thing. Here's what I can tell you that I have observed on several occasions now:

1.) It appears very mundane, like any star at first glance.
2.) On closer inspection, it is different from the other stars, in that it blinks. It resembles Sirius in this aspect, though it is clearly strobing interesting coloration; mainly red, white, blue, and green, though other colors as well.
3.) ON CLOSER INSPECTION, and I mean like a deep quiet almost meditative singular focus on this object, it MOVES. It stays roughly in the same small patch of sky, but within the area I have observed it performing small spirals, cursive-like script movements, and back-forth patterns.

This is extremely bizarre, but if I go locate the object and stare intently at it, this happens infallibly everytime. What is sad and difficult for me, as someone who is open to a more profound reality than any text book presents, is being able to point this out to my friends/family, and for them to not be able to see it. Not being able to see is a condition of the mind, the third eye being blind.

If you can only FOCUS, with your whole being (soul) on this object, you will clearly see that it is intelligently controlled. I am not a govt. shill or some kind of disinfo guy, I am a deeply curious and profoundly inspired Earthling.

[e-mail]

Welcome to the discussion group, Broox.

Indeed the image appears to be intelligently controlled, by your own mind and its vivid imagination that apparently sees what it "wants" to believe could be in the sky.

If you would like more detailed explanations from forum members for the phenomenon you observed, then please provide us with the following information:

1) Your location during the sighting
2) The date and time (with zone) of your sighting
3) The azimuth and altitude of the object, i.e. its direction along the horizon and distance in degrees above the horizon

Meanwhile, the atmospheric prismatic dispersion that results in a star's twinkling and color shifts has been thoroughly discussed earlier in this thread.

[chowdah]

I don't know what it is or when it was that I first saw the red, blue, white and green blinking star. I could be wrong... But seems like a fairly recent addition. I'm 41 years old and find it a bit strange that I don't remember seeing this in the night sky as a kid or young adult. I have always been fascinated by the night sky and feel I would have asked enough questions about it to remember if Id seen it.

The moon and most stars/planets in the sky seem have some kind of story or legend attached to it. (The man on the moon, Cassiopeia, etc.) If this star/planet/object has always been visible in the night sky, there must be some old stories or folk lore based on this super cool, multi colored, blinking star, right? After all... it has been seen by the people of earth for thousands of years and, without question, stands out among the other "twinkle twinkle little stars." Maybe I'm not looking hard enough. But, I couldn't find anything on line.

Anyone Remember some I can share with my kids?

[Richie from Boston]

This cant be Antares, as they are now (in 2015) all over the night. they were a rarity but now are everywhere. My guess is its either part of "star wars" or something worse.

[Centaur]

Jul 11, 2015 19:05:56 GMT -6 Richie from Boston said:

This cant be Antares, as they are now (in 2015) all over the night. they were a rarity but now are everywhere. My guess is its either part of "star wars" or something worse.

Welcome to the discussion group, Richie.

If you want explanations from members here, you'll have to describe what you are seeing. What exactly is it that you now see everywhere? What do you mean by "star wars".

Did you read any of the later posts in this six-year old thread beyond the early mention of Antares? If so, were they not helpful for you? 

Are you observing from the city of Boston or somewhere else? Have atmospheric or lighting conditions there changed over the years. At what time of night are you observing? In what direction are you looking? How rapidly do the stars appear to be moving?

Have you checked with an eye doctor about possible changes in vision? Those of us who have been amateur astronomers and regular night sky observers for many years (sixty years in my case) have not noticed significant changes in the appearances of the stars.

[stephane]

Mar 30, 2010 8:46:49 GMT -6 nicole becker said:

Hello! My family and I have been seeing the Red, white and Blue flashing star almost every night. Some nights it is so large that we can view it with binoculars. There are horizontal and vertical balls of the above mentioned colors swirling around it, at an irregular pace. Also there are 2-3 other stars of question in the sky that are a solid golden color that appear to be related to it's passage. What ever it is, it is abnormal and my children are freaking out about it, because it looks like a space ship, but I feel it is related to the planetary alignment that is about to happen. It upsets me that the government has not addressed it's presence. Obviously it can't be ignored too much longer.
- Ashtabula County Ohio

[stephane]

i see it right now from Montreal Canada
[e-mail]

[Centaur]

Sept 3, 2015 19:54:49 GMT -6 stephane said:

i see it right now from Montreal Canada
[e-mail]

Welcome to the discussion group, Stephane.

It would have been helpful if you had provided a description of what you saw including its direction on the horizon and elevation above the horizon. Quoting an Ohioan posting in 2010 about an object that was probably Venus will not likely lead us anywhere, since Venus currently appears in the predawn sky.

If you were looking just above the horizon toward the north-northeast, then queries such as yours at this time of year usually refer to the bright star Capella, as it slowly rises and is viewed through a long stretch of atmosphere and dust that cause twinkling and color shifts. 

At your latitude in Montreal, Capella is actually circumpolar and once each day skims just above the north point on your horizon. Here in Chicagoland, Capella dips underneath the northern horizon for about 2.5 hours each day.

[itsChowdah]

Apr 22, 2015 8:28:06 GMT -6 Centaur said:

Apr 21, 2015 23:33:44 GMT -6 chowdah said:

I don't know what it is or when it was that I first saw the red, blue, white and green blinking star. I could be wrong... But seems like a fairly recent addition. I'm 41 years old and find it a bit strange that I don't remember seeing this in the night sky as a kid or young adult. I have always been fascinated by the night sky and feel I would have asked enough questions about it to remember if Id seen it.

The moon and most stars/planets in the sky seem have some kind of story or legend attached to it. (The man on the moon, Cassiopeia, etc.) If this star/planet/object has always been visible in the night sky, there must be some old stories or folk lore based on this super cool, multi colored, blinking star, right? After all... it has been seen by the people of earth for thousands of years and, without question, stands out among the other "twinkle twinkle little stars." Maybe I'm not looking hard enough. But, I couldn't find anything on line.

Anyone Remember some I can share with my kids?

Welcome to the discussion group, chowdah. Thank you for your anecdote and reminder of astronomical references in mythology.

However, to help provide identification and background stories for your specific observation, we need to know your location, date & time of observation, the star's azimuth (direction along the horizon), the star's altitude (height above the horizon in degrees) and movement relative to other stars or the ground.

Meanwhile, other posts in this thread describe the atmospheric prismatic dispersion that results in a star appearing to twinkle and oscillate through a range of colors, particularly when it is near the horizon.




Thanks for responding!

FYI.. I just received an email a few days ago letting me know that this thread was updated but I see you responded the very next day after I created the post back in April.  I think the sudden appearance of this blinking star (that no one remembers being there) is absolute PROOF the Berenstein/Berenstain Bear Conundrum.  I, for one, remember Berenstein. With an E.













  OK... seriously now!


I am in south east Pennsylvania.







I just woke up @ 3:30am and see the star in the SE sky (150 degrees) and about 10 degrees up from horizon moving slowly up and right at a 30 - 40 degree angle. Like you said in your response, these atmospheric prismatic dispersion's tend to be more extreme when the star is located near the horizon. Although I have seen it (among others that are not quite as vivid) that are not near the horizon at all. But, your atmospheric prismatic dispersion explanation is good enough for me. But it did seem to be spinning and moving faster than it should be at times. I assure you this has nothing to do with the fact that I live in the mushroom capitol of the US. Funny!



















I do have one more question for you.













My Mother named a star for me. How can I find it in the sky?













Star Registration Number: ... SAO 356552






RA: ......................... 140.8526362






Declination: ................ -35.90562578

[Centaur]

Welcome back, itsChowdah. Thank you for your thorough description of the the star you observed this morning. It was almost certainly Sirius in the constellation Canis Major. It is easily the brightest fixed star; some planets are brighter. Sirius will appear in that position about four minutes earlier each night. During winter evenings it will stand out in your southern sky. When you may have been observing it in April, it would have been in the southwestern sky during the evening.

Regarding the star that your mother supposedly named after you: SAO 356552 is not found in the SIMBAD database, probably due to dimness. Based on the coordinates it would seem to be one requiring a telescope to be viewed in the southeast corner of the southern constellation Pyxis near its borders with Antlia and Vela. Although stating Right Ascension in what appears to be degrees rather than hours less than 24 is not typical.

If your mother simply announced she had given a star your name, that is admirable. If she paid money to one of those scam star naming companies, that is another matter. The competing companies often provide new names to identical dim stars at difficult locations for observers north of the tropics. The only organization recognized by astronomers as a namer of stars is the International Astronomical Union, and they don't accept payments for star names.

[Clause]

Its sirius if its the same one im looking at, underneath orion.

[Charles]

Sept 10, 2010 22:51:29 GMT -6 Centaur said:

Sept 10, 2010 22:38:25 GMT -6 @Jayme said:

OK, i have been seeing this strange star? guessing that is what it is. Googled it and found this site. I am a little late getting in the discussion but, very interested as to what it might be. I have noticed it for a lil over a week now, not sure how long it has been there but i am just now seeing it. It is very very very bright "twinkling" red blue green. It usually does not show until around 11 (North Carolina)

Welcome to the discussion group, Jayme. In order to help you we need to know the direction you were facing and the approximate altitude of the star in degrees above the horizon (90° is straight up). A more precise time and location in North Carolina would be helpful. Is it the brightest star in the sky at that time? If so, it is the planet Jupiter which rises in the east and then veers toward the south. If not, your answers to my questions will help to determine which star it actually is. The nearer a star or planet is to the horizon, the more likely it is to twinkle and shift colors due to its light passing through much unstable air, water vapor and dust before reaching your eyes.

[Charles]

Sept 10, 2010 22:51:29 GMT -6 Centaur said:

Sept 10, 2010 22:38:25 GMT -6 @Jayme said:

OK, i have been seeing this strange star? guessing that is what it is. Googled it and found this site. I am a little late getting in the discussion but, very interested as to what it might be. I have noticed it for a lil over a week now, not sure how long it has been there but i am just now seeing it. It is very very very bright "twinkling" red blue green. It usually does not show until around 11 (North Carolina)

Welcome to the discussion group, Jayme. In order to help you we need to know the direction you were facing and the approximate altitude of the star in degrees above the horizon (90° is straight up). A more precise time and location in North Carolina would be helpful. Is it the brightest star in the sky at that time? If so, it is the planet Jupiter which rises in the east and then veers toward the south. If not, your answers to my questions will help to determine which star it actually is. The nearer a star or planet is to the horizon, the more likely it is to twinkle and shift colors due to its light passing through much unstable air, water vapor and dust before reaching your eyes.

[Centaur]

Oct 21, 2015 0:13:17 GMT -6 Charles said:

Sept 10, 2010 22:51:29 GMT -6 Centaur said:

Welcome to the discussion group, Jayme. In order to help you we need to know the direction you were facing and the approximate altitude of the star in degrees above the horizon (90° is straight up). A more precise time and location in North Carolina would be helpful. Is it the brightest star in the sky at that time? If so, it is the planet Jupiter which rises in the east and then veers toward the south. If not, your answers to my questions will help to determine which star it actually is. The nearer a star or planet is to the horizon, the more likely it is to twinkle and shift colors due to its light passing through much unstable air, water vapor and dust before reaching your eyes.

Welcome to the discussion group, Charles. You have twice in succession posted the same quotes from a discussion that took place five years ago, but you've added no comments of your own. What is it that you want to say?

[Niki]

Hello everyone, I see this discussion has been going on for quite some time. I read the beginning and the end of it, so if this is old information sorry for repeating it. If you check out this website here, earthsky.org/tonight/what-star-in-the-northeast-flashes-red-and-green , it suggests that the star is Capella. Since the star is located lower in the sky there's more atmosphere for the light to refract through there for producing a multicolored effect. It does look like a satellite or space ship though!

[Niki]

For reference, I am in San Diego, facing north-ish, at 9;30 on October 21st. The star is about 30 degrees above the horizon, I'm seeing red, white, and blue with subtle hits of green. Super bright compared to the other stars around. The star is quickly rising.

[Centaur]

Oct 21, 2015 22:17:29 GMT -6 Niki said:

Hello everyone, I see this discussion has been going on for quite some time. I read the beginning and the end of it, so if this is old information sorry for repeating it. If you check out this website here, earthsky.org/tonight/what-star-in-the-northeast-flashes-red-and-green , it suggests that the star is Capella. Since the star is located lower in the sky there's more atmosphere for the light to refract through there for producing a multicolored effect. It does look like a satellite or space ship though!

Oct 21, 2015 23:24:55 GMT -5 Niki said:

For reference, I am in San Diego, facing north-ish, at 9;30 on October 21st. The star is about 30 degrees above the horizon, I'm seeing red, white, and blue with subtle hits of green. Super bright compared to the other stars around. The star is quickly rising.

Welcome to the discussion group, Niki. Thank you for your thorough description for the appearance of the star.

At that time at your location the very bright star Capella was in the northeast about 22° above the horizon, although fairly bright Aldebaran would have been a little lower and more nearly east. No other really bright stars would have been in that vicinity at that time. But Capella is the herald announcing that the bright winter constellations will soon be rising.

At this time every year in this thread we get questions about a star turns out to be Capella. At first it rises slowly due to being nearly circumpolar at most US latitudes, then it would have been rising more quickly by the time of your observation. It takes a while for it to get high enough for its light to appear more steady, especially when the observer is near a large city. It will go through this routine about 4 minutes earlier each night. After a year the routine will repeat at the same time of night.

[amykins]

I have witnessed this star every night. According to my skymap, its the star Sirius A.

[Centaur]

Oct 29, 2015 2:23:42 GMT -6 amykins said:

I have witnessed this star every night. According to my skymap, its the star Sirius A.

Welcome to the discussion group, amykins.

To which post were you responding? At this time of year Sirius is seen rising in the southeast during the middle of the night; Capella rises in the northeast during the early evening.

[Paulie pchris00]

The lack of understanding of basic astronomy by guests in this thread troubles me. There seems to be an utter lack of comprehension of seasonal shifting of stars and constellations as we orbit the Sun, and the nightly east to west motion of stars as our planet rotates. I'm not trying to be condescending, but I really wish that commenters on this thread would do a little basic research, and make repeated nightly observations for at least a month before posting.

[Centaur]

Nov 3, 2015 22:22:17 GMT -6 Paulie pchris00 said:

The lack of understanding of basic astronomy by guests in this thread troubles me. There seems to be an utter lack of comprehension of seasonal shifting of stars and constellations as we orbit the Sun, and the nightly east to west motion of stars as our planet rotates. I'm not trying to be condescending, but I really wish that commenters on this thread would do a little basic research, and make repeated nightly observations for at least a month before posting.

Sad but true, Paulie. Sixth grade science lessons are often forgotten by adults. But let’s give many of the visitors to this thread some credit for coming with questions and seeking natural explanations. The fact that the number of views for this thread greatly exceeds the number of replies, may indicate that many visitors found their answers without needing to ask. Too many instead first go to woo woo websites to excitedly describe the “UFO” (to them meaning ET piloted flying saucer) that they saw flashing either welcome or ominous signals. They may be seeking confirmation from others who respond, “I know, I know.”

As Julius Caesar noted, most people believe what they “want” to believe. Hopefully some of them have been set straight by seeking answers in this thread. However it is somewhat disconcerting that so many of them do not return with at least a thank you for having their questions answered. Perhaps the explanations were not what they were hoping to read.

[Shaughnessy Tichy]

I was outside smoking in Minnesota while I witnessed this flashing "star" I watched for movement as I kept eye on the distance between it and a antenna. It was stationery I have 20/10 vision. I came back outside 30 mins later and it was gone. No star appears still, then is no where to be found in 30 mins... Correct?

[Centaur]

Feb 1, 2016 2:58:36 GMT -6 Shaughnessy Tichy said:

I was outside smoking in Minnesota while I witnessed this flashing "star" I watched for movement as I kept eye on the distance between it and a antenna. It was stationery I have 20/10 vision. I came back outside 30 mins later and it was gone. No star appears still, then is no where to be found in 30 mins... Correct?

Welcome to the discussion group, Shaughnessy Tichy.

Please provide details on your precise location, date of the observation, time of night, duration of the observation, direction of the star along the horizon, altitude in degrees of the star above the horizon, and brightness relative to other stars. 

Was it stationary relative to other stars as the Earth rotates, or just relative to the landscape? 

Perhaps the star set or was hidden behind a cloud. It may have been a distant airplane headed straight toward you. If you provide answers to my questions, we may be better able to offer an explanation. 

[Cluster Steve]

This star is back. Right now about 30-40 degrees above the horizon to the west and slightly north just after sunset. I have check it out in 15x75 binoculars and you definitely see Red, Blue and white flashing. I am going to try to get a telescope on it one of these nights. It is definitely something I have never seen before. It seems to move with the stars. I live near greater cincinnati airport but have definitely ruled out a plane. I know mercury is visible but planet generally don't flash like this. At first i thought maybe a drone but it stays up way to long for that. As I said it seems to with with the background stars so I have to believe it to be a natural phenomenon. Going to see if it is still visible tonight.

[Centaur]

Apr 18, 2016 7:31:41 GMT -6 Cluster Steve said:

This star is back. Right now about 30-40 degrees above the horizon to the west and slightly north just after sunset. I have check it out in 15x75 binoculars and you definitely see Red, Blue and white flashing. I am going to try to get a telescope on it one of these nights. It is definitely something I have never seen before. It seems to move with the stars. I live near greater cincinnati airport but have definitely ruled out a plane. I know mercury is visible but planet generally don't flash like this. At first i thought maybe a drone but it stays up way to long for that. As I said it seems to with with the background stars so I have to believe it to be a natural phenomenon. Going to see if it is still visible tonight.

Welcome to the discussion group, Steve. Thank you for your thorough description of the object.

A half hour after sunset yesterday in Cincinnati, the magnitude +0.1 star Capella was 50° above the horizon and 29° north of west. It is the fourth brightest fixed star visible from Cincinnati: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capella

Capella is frequently the star observed by participants in this particular thread.

The magnitude +0.9 star Aldebaran was 30° above the horizon and 2° south of west. It is the ninth brightest fixed star visible from Cincinnati: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aldebaran

Magnitude +0.1 Mercury was 13° above the horizon and 15° north of west. Despite what some textbooks may say, planets can indeed twinkle when near the horizon or the atmosphere is turbulent.

[Cluster Steve]

Thanks for the answer. When I look at it in my Binos at first it looked metallic and mechanical. Kind of freaked me out at first. I have a 5 in Orion reflector telescope so one of these nights I will check it out better if it is still around. I am hoping that i will get a better view with the scope. I have some of the celestron xcel eyepieces and 14mm meade luminous so hopefully I can solve this. Of course most people I talk to on facebook want to go the alien route but I find a natural solution much more intriguing.

[Cluster Steve]

I also want to mention I seen a really big fireball that same night I observed this. I have seen two of this size in my life time. Once when I was a teenager I seen a huge fireball in daylight move from east to west and then this one was was also very big and had a long tail coming behind it. When I seen the fireball and was observing the flashing object I have to admit it was a bit weird and made me question my reality for a few seconds. Now though I know that it was just a cool coincidence and I was super lucky to catch a fireball of that size. I have not had my scope out in a few months and this has definitely gotten me to question why and make some plans to get it out.