Within Flares
What flares explain in Phoenix
The later Phoenix light display fits a military flare explanation, but the wider 1997 witness record is not one simple event.
On this page
- The later Phoenix light display
- The Barry Goldwater range connection
- Why earlier reports remain separate
Page outline Jump by section
Introduction
The Phoenix Lights are often cited in UFO debates because one night in March 1997 produced reports that appear, at first glance, to describe a single extraordinary event. The strongest conventional explanation, however, concerns the later light display seen around 10 p.m. near Phoenix. A substantial body of evidence links those lights to military illumination flares dropped during training exercises over the Barry Goldwater Range. At the same time, many researchers, witnesses and even some sceptics argue that not every report from that evening can be reduced to the flare explanation. The central question is therefore not whether flares were present, but how much of the overall witness record they explain. [Wikipedia]WikipediaPhoenix LightsPhoenix Lights
The later Phoenix light display
The best-supported flare explanation concerns a line of bright lights observed in the south-western sky of the Phoenix metropolitan area at roughly 10 p.m. Witnesses described a row of luminous objects that appeared to hover, remain stationary and then disappear one by one. These observations closely match the behaviour of military illumination flares suspended beneath parachutes. [Wikipedia]WikipediaThe Phoenix IncidentThe Phoenix IncidentPresented as a documentary found footage film based on real events, it is set in the present day and focuses upon…
According to Air Force accounts and later investigations, A-10 aircraft participating in training exercises released LUU-2 illumination flares over the Barry Goldwater military range. These flares burn intensely while descending slowly, making them appear motionless when viewed from tens of kilometres away. As they descend behind distant terrain, they seem to extinguish sequentially even though they are simply dropping below the observer’s line of sight. [Wikipedia]WikipediaPhoenix LightsPhoenix Lights
Several features of the recorded videos support this interpretation:
- The lights remain fixed relative to one another for extended periods rather than manoeuvring as a single craft.
- Their brightness fluctuates in ways consistent with burning flares.
- They disappear from one side of the formation to the other, matching the effect expected when lights descend behind a mountain ridge.
- Later comparisons with known flare drops produced remarkably similar visual patterns. [Wikipedia]WikipediaThe Phoenix IncidentThe Phoenix IncidentPresented as a documentary found footage film based on real events, it is set in the present day and focuses upon…
For many investigators, these points make the later display one of the stronger examples of a UFO report being explained by military training lights rather than an unknown aerial object. [Wikipedia]WikipediaThe Phoenix IncidentThe Phoenix IncidentPresented as a documentary found footage film based on real events, it is set in the present day and focuses upon…
The Barry Goldwater range connection
The flare explanation gained credibility because investigators were able to identify a plausible source rather than merely proposing a generic possibility. The Barry Goldwater Range is a large military training area in south-west Arizona frequently used for air-to-ground exercises. On the night of 13 March 1997, Air National Guard aircraft were conducting operations associated with Operation Snowbird, a recurring training programme based out of Davis–Monthan Air Force Base. [Wikipedia]WikipediaThe Phoenix IncidentThe Phoenix IncidentPresented as a documentary found footage film based on real events, it is set in the present day and focuses upon…
Later reporting identified pilots and units linked to the exercise. Members of the Maryland Air National Guard confirmed participation in training flights over the range that evening, and military histories published after the event connected the squadron to the flare releases. Contemporary newspaper reporting in 1997 likewise traced the lights to visiting Air National Guard aircraft conducting training with illumination flares. [Wikipedia]WikipediaThe Phoenix IncidentThe Phoenix IncidentPresented as a documentary found footage film based on real events, it is set in the present day and focuses upon…
The geographic alignment is also important. The lights appeared in the direction of the range from much of Phoenix, and the Sierra Estrella mountains lie between parts of the city and the training area. Investigators argued that the mountains explain why the lights seemed to vanish in sequence: each flare descended behind the ridge at a slightly different time. [Wikipedia]WikipediaThe Phoenix IncidentThe Phoenix IncidentPresented as a documentary found footage film based on real events, it is set in the present day and focuses upon…
In UFO investigation terms, this is stronger than a simple resemblance argument. There was a known military activity, in a known training area, at the relevant time, producing exactly the type of light source capable of creating the observed visual effect. [Wikipedia]WikipediaThe Phoenix IncidentThe Phoenix IncidentPresented as a documentary found footage film based on real events, it is set in the present day and focuses upon…
Why earlier reports remain separate
The principal dispute is not over whether flares were dropped. It is over whether the flare explanation can account for the entire Phoenix Lights case.
Many witnesses reported unusual lights much earlier in the evening, beginning around 8 p.m. and extending across a large portion of Arizona. These reports described a moving V-shaped or triangular formation travelling across the state. The sightings stretched over hundreds of kilometres and occurred well before the widely filmed 10 p.m. light display. [Wikipedia]WikipediaThe Phoenix IncidentThe Phoenix IncidentPresented as a documentary found footage film based on real events, it is set in the present day and focuses upon…
This distinction is crucial because the most famous video footage comes from the later stationary lights, whereas many of the most dramatic witness accounts concern the earlier moving formation. Even sources that support the flare explanation commonly acknowledge that two separate observation periods occurred that night. [Wikipedia]WikipediaThe Phoenix IncidentThe Phoenix IncidentPresented as a documentary found footage film based on real events, it is set in the present day and focuses upon…
Researchers who favour conventional explanations have proposed that the earlier reports involved aircraft flying in formation, including A-10 aircraft associated with Operation Snowbird. Some observers, including an amateur astronomer who viewed the lights through a telescope, reported seeing individual aircraft rather than a single giant object. [Wikipedia]WikipediaThe Phoenix IncidentThe Phoenix IncidentPresented as a documentary found footage film based on real events, it is set in the present day and focuses upon…
However, critics of a complete aircraft explanation point to several unresolved issues:
- Numerous witnesses reported perceiving a single enormous structure rather than separate lights.
- The reported path covered a large region of Arizona, creating difficulties for any simple one-location explanation.
- The timing of the earlier sightings does not match the later flare releases.
- Some witness testimony describes motion and apparent overhead passage that differs from the stationary flare display. Unsolved Mysteries [2KGUN 9 Tucson News]kgun9.comKGUN 9 Tucson NewsMan behind famous 'Phoenix Lights' footage still mystified…18 Dec 2022 — Krzyston says before, he'd seen floating l…
Whether these reports reflect aircraft, perceptual effects, memory reconstruction, multiple unrelated observations or something genuinely unidentified remains debated. What is generally accepted is that the earlier reports and the later flare display should not automatically be treated as the same event. [Wikipedia]WikipediaThe Phoenix IncidentThe Phoenix IncidentPresented as a documentary found footage film based on real events, it is set in the present day and focuses upon…
What the Phoenix Lights show about flare explanations
The Phoenix Lights illustrate both the strengths and limits of flare-based explanations for UFO reports. The later Phoenix display is one of the best-documented cases in which military illumination flares match witness descriptions, video evidence, location data and known military activity. The case demonstrates how bright flares viewed at long range can appear to hover, maintain formation and vanish mysteriously. [2A Stamp A Day]stampaday.wordpress.comA Stamp A Day The Phoenix LightsA Stamp A DayThe Phoenix Lights - A Stamp A Day13 Mar 2019 — The U.S. Air Force explained the second event as slow-falling, long-burning…
At the same time, the broader Phoenix Lights record warns against treating every witness report from a famous event as a single phenomenon. The strongest evidence for flares concerns the later stationary lights near Phoenix. The earlier moving reports remain a separate evidential question. As a result, the Phoenix Lights are frequently cited both by advocates of conventional explanations and by those who argue that at least part of the 1997 witness record has not been fully accounted for. [Phoenix New Times]phoenixnewtimes.comphoenix lights ufo mystery explanations 19105870The first sighting happened between 7:55 and 8:40 p.m. and the second between 9:15…Read more…
Amazon book picks
Further Reading
Books and field guides related to What flares explain in Phoenix. Use these as the next step if you want deeper reading beyond the article.
The UFO Handbook
Provides tools for evaluating flare explanations and witness reports.
The Report on Unidentified Flying Objects
Explains official approaches to evaluating unusual aerial reports.
eBay marketplace picks
Marketplace Samples
Example marketplace items related to this page. Use the search link to explore similar finds on eBay.
Endnotes
-
Source: Wikipedia
Title: Phoenix Lights
Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phoenix_Lights -
Source: unsolved.com
Link: https://unsolved.com/gallery/phoenix-mystery-lights/Source snippet
Unsolved MysteriesPhoenix Mystery LightsThe military said the flares were dropped between 9:00 and 10:00 PM. However, the most impressive...
-
Source: kgun9.com
Link: https://www.kgun9.com/news/state/man-behind-famous-phoenix-lights-footage-still-mystified-25-years-laterSource snippet
KGUN 9 Tucson NewsMan behind famous 'Phoenix Lights' footage still mystified...18 Dec 2022 — Krzyston says before, he'd seen floating l...
-
Source: Wikipedia
Title: The Phoenix Incident
Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Phoenix_IncidentSource snippet
The Phoenix IncidentPresented as a documentary found footage film based on real events, it is set in the present day and focuses upon...
-
Source: youtube.com
Title: Phoenix Lights Explained & Debunked
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TD6MYZcucQASource snippet
Phoenix Lights - The Dark Truth?...
-
Source: youtube.com
Title: Phoenix Lights
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1fW1l1sh-ASource snippet
witness describes what she saw...
-
Source: phoenixnewtimes.com
Title: phoenix lights ufo mystery explanations 19105870
Link: https://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/uncategorized/phoenix-lights-ufo-mystery-explanations-19105870/Source snippet
The first sighting happened between 7:55 and 8:40 p.m. and the second between 9:15...Read more...
-
Source: stampaday.wordpress.com
Title: A Stamp A Day The Phoenix Lights
Link: https://stampaday.wordpress.com/2019/03/13/the-phoenix-lights/Source snippet
A Stamp A DayThe Phoenix Lights - A Stamp A Day13 Mar 2019 — The U.S. Air Force explained the second event as slow-falling, long-burning...
-
Source: thisunexplaineduniverse.com
Title: phoenix lights
Link: https://www.thisunexplaineduniverse.com/articles/phoenix-lightsSource snippet
event, leaves the earlier V-formation sighting completely unaddressed. And even...Read more...
-
Source: reddit.com
Title: Phoenix lights
Link: https://www.reddit.com/r/aliens/comments/1nh9psn/phoenix_lights_1997/Source snippet
1997: r/aliensThe original sighting was supposedly earlier in the evening, and the story goes that the military dropped a sequence of fl...
-
Source: planeandpilotmag.com
Title: the phoenix lights
Link: https://planeandpilotmag.com/the-phoenix-lights/Source snippet
20 Sept 2022 — The most popular and intriguing explanation to emerge is that the lights were emitted by extraterrestrial spacecraft.Read...
Additional References
-
Source: reddit.com
Link: https://www.reddit.com/r/UFOs/comments/dzrimg/is_there_any_video_of_the_original_phoenix_lights/Source snippet
RedditIs there any video of the original Phoenix Lights incident?Flares were dropped for the 10:00 News. A giant chevron shaped craft was...
-
Source: reddit.com
Link: https://www.reddit.com/r/skeptic/comments/xuhht4/need_help_finding_video_that_explains_phoenix/Source snippet
Need help finding video that explains Phoenix LightsHere is the video explaining how the Phoenix Lights were actually flares dropping beh...
-
Source: reddit.com
Link: https://www.reddit.com/r/aliens/comments/189wk23/what_is_the_general_opinion_on_the_phoenix_lights/ -
Source: medium.com
Link: https://medium.com/%40levi_27264/the-phoenix-lights-debunking-the-debunkers-f9a2d1932cd -
Source: youtube.com
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EOkXUvS3iX0Source snippet
19 years later and The Phoenix Lights mystery goes onIt comes around this time of year; Phoenix residents start talking about the Phoenix...
-
Source: reddit.com
Link: https://www.reddit.com/r/UFOs/comments/1prwx2y/the_most_comprehensive_video_of_the_phoenix/Source snippet
I know some people have reported seven, but they are either mistaken, misremembering, lying...Read more...
-
Source: youtube.com
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KKDy1QfBlxsSource snippet
The Phoenix Lights: 28 years later, the mystery enduresOn the night of March 13, 1997, thousands of Arizonans looked up and saw something...
Published: March 13, 1997
-
Source: discoveryuk.com
Title: the phoenix lights phenomenon an unsolved ufo mystery
Link: https://www.discoveryuk.com/mysteries/the-phoenix-lights-phenomenon-an-unsolved-ufo-mystery/Source snippet
The Phoenix Lights Phenomenon: An Unsolved UFO Mystery14 May 2024 — Some are convinced the lights over Phoenix in 1997 were UFOs, or UAPs...
Published: May 2024
-
Source: lasvegassun.com
Title: military now says flares may be cause of mysteriou
Link: https://lasvegassun.com/news/1997/jul/25/military-now-says-flares-may-be-cause-of-mysteriou/Source snippet
s...25 Jul 1997 — It turns out visiting jets from the Maryland Air National Guard were using high-intensity flares over a bombing range...
-
Source: deseret.com
Title: flares not ufos caused light show military says
Link: https://www.deseret.com/1997/7/26/19325702/flares-not-ufos-caused-light-show-military-says/Source snippet
Deseret NewsFlares, not UFOs, caused light show, military says26 Jul 1997 — Visiting jets from the Maryland Air National Guard were using...
Topic Tree