Branchoria IFOs IFOs

Ordinary skies, strange reports, and how UFO sightings get identified.

Within IFOs

Weather Clues That Explain Strange Lights

Haze, fog, cloud layers and visibility records often decide whether an ordinary object would look distorted or hidden.

On this page

  • Visibility and haze
  • Cloud layers and obscuration
  • Using records carefully
Preview for Weather Clues That Explain Strange Lights

Introduction

Weather records are one of the most practical tools for turning a UFO report into an IFO: an identified flying object or ordinary stimulus seen under confusing conditions. Haze, fog, cloud layers, rain, smoke and low visibility do not just hide things; they can change apparent colour, shape, distance, motion and brightness. A planet near the horizon may shimmer through haze, an aircraft may disappear into cloud, a balloon may seem self-lit at sunset, and a searchlight can look like a moving object when its beam hits broken cloud.

Overview image for Weather Records That is why weather is not background decoration in UFO investigation. Project Blue Book explicitly treated weather conditions as essential information, and listed “weather conditions” among the missing details that could make a report impossible to evaluate. It also noted that planets, aircraft and other ordinary objects were often reported as UFOs when seen through haze, light fog, moving clouds or other obscurations. [Defense Logistics Agency]esd.whs.milDefense Logistics Agency

Why visibility records matter in IFO cases

Visibility records answer a deceptively simple question: could the witness actually see what they thought they saw? Meteorological visibility is normally about how far a standard object can be seen and identified, but a UFO witness is usually trying to judge an unfamiliar point of light, moving shape or partial silhouette. Those are much harder tasks than seeing a known landmark.

Fog is the clearest example. The Met Office defines fog as a cloud at ground level that reduces visibility to less than 1,000 metres; dense fog can reduce visibility below 100 metres. Different kinds of fog matter because they behave differently: radiation fog often forms overnight in calm, clear conditions, valley fog can be trapped by terrain, and advection fog can move in from sea or over a cold surface. [Met Office]weather.metoffice.gov.ukMet Office What is fog?Met Office What is fog? A sighting that seems to involve an object “appearing from nowhere” may simply coincide with a patch of fog, mist or low cloud moving across the line of sight.

Haze is more subtle because the sky can still look broadly clear. The World Meteorological Organization warns that elevated haze layers can mislead pilots: surface visibility reports may be correct horizontally at the airfield, yet visibility inside a haze layer can feel much worse, while a pilot above a haze layer may initially see farther than the reported airfield visibility and then lose visibility when descending into it. [World Meteorological Organization]community.wmo.intWorld Meteorological Organization AviationWorld Meteorological Organization Aviation For UFO reports, this matters because the witness may honestly describe a clear night while a thin aerosol layer near the horizon is still enough to blur, redden or intermittently obscure a bright object.

The key visibility clues in a report are therefore not just “clear” or “cloudy”. Useful records include:

  • Reported visibility: whether nearby METARs, weather stations or aviation forecasts indicated clear air, mist, haze, rain, smoke, snow or fog.
  • Direction-specific visibility: whether the object was seen towards the horizon, over water, towards city lights, across hills, or through a known haze layer.
  • Time change: whether visibility was improving, worsening or variable around the reported minute.
  • Observer height: whether the witness was on a hill, in an aircraft, at sea level, in a valley or beneath a low inversion.
  • Light path: whether the object was seen low in the sky, where more atmosphere, haze and refraction sit between the observer and the target.

These details can turn a broad guess into a testable explanation. A bright stationary light in poor horizon visibility is a different case from the same light seen overhead in clear air.

Weather Records illustration 1

How haze, fog and rain distort ordinary lights

Weather changes UFO reports mainly by changing contrast. A point of light that would normally be recognisable can lose its outline, acquire a halo, seem larger than it is, or appear to pulse as thin cloud and haze pass in front of it. The object has not changed; the medium between the object and the observer has.

Project Blue Book made this point directly for astronomical sightings. It described bright stars, planets, comets, meteors and other celestial bodies as common UFO report sources, and singled out Venus, Jupiter and Mars as planets that had been reported as UFOs when observed through haze, light fog, moving clouds or unusual conditions. [Defense Logistics Agency]esd.whs.milDefense Logistics Agency This is especially important near the horizon, where stars and planets are seen through a longer, thicker path of atmosphere. A low planet can look brighter, redder, more unstable and less star-like than the same planet higher in the sky.

Aircraft lights can be altered in the same way. Blue Book noted that aircraft seen at high altitude and distance can take on disc-like or rocket-like appearances because of sunlight reflection, and that condensation trails may glow red or orange when reflecting sunlight. [Defense Logistics Agency]esd.whs.milDefense Logistics Agency A weather check can therefore explain two features that often sound dramatic in witness accounts: a “fiery” colour and a shape that seems unlike an aircraft. The shape may be a reflection, haze bloom, cloud edge, contrail or partial view rather than the body of the aircraft itself.

Rain and moisture add another layer. Aviation safety material on visual illusions warns that light rain, fog, haze, mist, smoke, dust, glare and darkness can affect height, distance and depth perception. It also notes that haze can make a runway seem farther away, while rain can produce fuzzy or halo effects around lights. [Skybrary]skybrary.aeroVisual Illusions AwarenessVisual Illusions Awareness In UFO terms, the same optical problem can make a distant landing light, approach light, tower beacon or aircraft seem closer, larger or stranger than it is.

Jim Yosef - Link | House | NCS - Copyright Free Music

Channel: NoCopyrightSounds

Open on YouTube

Cloud layers and obscuration

Cloud evidence is often more useful than a simple weather summary because UFO sightings frequently involve intermittent disappearance. A witness may report that a light “blinked out”, “cloaked”, “entered another dimension” or “shot away”, when a low cloud deck or ragged cloud layer was simply crossing the line of sight.

Cloud records help investigators ask whether the object was above, within or below the cloud layer. The Met Office explains that cloud observations include type, amount and height, and that multiple cloud layers may be present at different heights. Cloud amount is reported in oktas, or eighths of the sky; 8 oktas means full cloud cover, while 9 oktas indicates the sky is obscured by fog or another meteorological phenomenon. [Met Office]weather.metoffice.gov.ukMet Office What is fog?Met Office What is fog? A sighting under 7 or 8 oktas of low cloud is not the same as a sighting under high cirrus with clear lower air.

The limits of records matter too. The Met Office notes that satellite imagery is excellent for large-scale cloud distribution, but it has limitations: high cloud can mask low cloud, shallow low cloud may be hard to distinguish from fog, and cloud base cannot be measured from space in the way aviation often requires. Surface stations and cloud-base instruments therefore remain important for local interpretation. [Met Office]weather.metoffice.gov.ukMet Office What is fog?Met Office What is fog? For a UFO case, a satellite image that appears broadly clear may not rule out local mist, low stratus, hill fog or broken scud cloud.

Aviation tools show why this is a practical decision problem rather than a vague impression. The U.S. Aviation Weather Center’s Graphical Forecasts for Aviation combine observations, forecasts and warnings, including clouds, precipitation, visibility, ceiling, radar and pilot reports; they also allow users to examine recent and forecast conditions over time. [aviationweather.gov]aviationweather.govAW C GFA HelpAW C GFA Help The FAA’s Aeronautical Information Manual describes cloud and surface forecast products that include cloud coverage, bases, layers, tops, visibility and weather phenomena, and it gives examples where flight category is restricted by fog, haze, smoke or rain. [Federal Aviation Administration]faa.govFederal Aviation Administration Chapter 7. Safety of FlightFederal Aviation Administration Chapter 7. Safety of Flight Those are exactly the kinds of records that can decide whether an ordinary light would have been distorted, hidden or misjudged.

Weather Records illustration 2

Reading weather records without overclaiming

Weather records are powerful, but they rarely “solve” a case by themselves. They work best when combined with time, position, direction, elevation angle, witness movement and possible candidate objects such as aircraft, satellites, balloons or planets. Poor weather can make a mundane explanation more plausible, but it does not automatically identify the object.

This distinction is important because modern UAP investigations repeatedly emphasise data quality. NASA’s independent UAP study stated that many UAP observations can be attributed to known phenomena, but that the needed data often do not exist; eyewitness reports alone are usually not reproducible and often lack enough information for definitive conclusions. [NASA Science]science.nasa.govSource details in endnotes. AARO’s 2024 annual report similarly said that many cases remain unresolved because of insufficient data, while hundreds of resolved or pending cases were attributed to prosaic objects such as balloons, birds, unmanned aerial systems, satellites and aircraft. [U.S. Department of War]media.defense.govFY24 CONSOLIDATED ANNUAL REPORT ON UAP 508FY24 CONSOLIDATED ANNUAL REPORT ON UAP 508 Weather records are one way to reduce that uncertainty, not a magic shortcut around it.

A careful weather-based assessment usually follows a decision path:

  1. Fix the sighting geometry. Establish the observer’s location, the direction of view, the time, the object’s apparent height above the horizon and whether the observer was moving.
  2. Check local records. Compare the report with nearby weather stations, METARs, visibility readings, cloud-base observations, radar, satellite imagery and relevant aviation forecasts.
  3. Look for layers, not just labels. “Clear” may still allow haze near the horizon; “cloudy” may refer to high cloud that would not hide a low aircraft; “fog” may be localised in a valley.
  4. Test candidate objects through the weather. Ask whether Venus, Jupiter, a star, an aircraft, a balloon, a drone, a satellite train or a searchlight would have appeared in that direction and whether the recorded weather would change its appearance.
  5. Keep the confidence level honest. If the weather record supports distortion but the time or direction is vague, the result may be “consistent with” an IFO rather than a positive identification.

The most common mistake is treating weather as either present or absent. In real cases, the important clue is often the exact kind of weather: a thin haze layer, broken low cloud, fog in a valley, rain between the witness and the light, or a cloud base that matches the point where the object vanished.

Weather Records illustration 3

What a weather clue can and cannot prove

A strong weather clue can explain why a normal object looked strange. Haze can soften sharp edges and make a point light appear larger. Fog can hide a structure while leaving its lights visible. Broken cloud can make a steady light seem to switch on and off. Low cloud can make a searchlight beam look like a luminous moving patch. A temperature inversion can favour mirage-like effects, and the World Meteorological Organization’s cloud atlas defines a mirage as an optical phenomenon involving images of distant objects that may be steady or wavering, single or multiple, upright or inverted. [International Cloud Atlas]cloudatlas.wmo.intSource details in endnotes.

But weather evidence is weaker when it is general, distant or mismatched to the sighting direction. A weather station ten miles away may not capture fog in a valley. An airport visibility report may describe horizontal surface visibility, not the slant path from a hillside witness to a low planet. A satellite image may miss shallow fog or fail to reveal the cloud base. A single “clear” report may hide the fact that high cloud, smoke, dust or humidity affected contrast.

The best use of weather records is therefore comparative. If a report says a light vanished at a certain elevation, and cloud-base records show a broken layer at roughly that height, cloud obscuration becomes a serious candidate. If a report describes a red-orange glowing “craft” near sunset, and aviation weather plus sun angle show a high-altitude aircraft or balloon still sunlit above a darker surface layer, the colour becomes less mysterious. If a report describes a stationary white object near the western horizon at dusk through haze, an astronomical check becomes especially important.

Weather clues do not dismiss witnesses. They explain why sincere observers can report real visual experiences that are hard to identify in the moment. In the IFO branch of UFO reports, that is their main value: they turn “it looked impossible” into a set of testable questions about visibility, cloud, light and line of sight.

Reaction to shocking video of U.S. missile bouncing off UFO

Channel: CBS News

Open on YouTube

Amazon book picks

Further Reading

Books and field guides related to Weather Clues That Explain Strange Lights. Use these as the next step if you want deeper reading beyond the article.

Browse more on Amazon: The Cloudspotter's books The UFO Experience NightWatch

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

eBay marketplace picks

Marketplace Samples

Example marketplace items related to this page. Use the search link to explore similar finds on eBay.

Using USA
Browse more on eBay.co.uk

Example items shown for inspiration; availability and pricing can change. Branchoria may earn a commission if you purchase through outbound eBay links.

Endnotes

  1. Source: esd.whs.mil
    Title: Defense Logistics Agency
    Link: https://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/FOID/Reading%20Room/UFOsandUAPs/proj_b1.pdf?ver=2017-05-22-113513-837

  2. Source: weather.metoffice.gov.uk
    Title: Met Office What is fog?
    Link: https://weather.metoffice.gov.uk/learn-about/weather/types-of-weather/fog

  3. Source: skybrary.aero
    Title: Visual Illusions Awareness
    Link: https://skybrary.aero/sites/default/files/bookshelf/177.pdf

  4. Source: weather.metoffice.gov.uk
    Title: Met Office How we measure cloud
    Link: https://weather.metoffice.gov.uk/guides/observations/how-we-measure-cloud

  5. Source: aviationweather.gov
    Title: AW C GFA Help
    Link: https://aviationweather.gov/gfa/help/

  6. Source: faa.gov
    Title: Federal Aviation Administration Chapter 7. Safety of Flight
    Link: https://www.faa.gov/air_traffic/publications/ATpubs/AIM_html/chap7_section_1.html

  7. Source: science.nasa.gov
    Link: https://science.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/uap-independent-study-team-final-report.pdf

  8. Source: media.defense.gov
    Title: FY24 CONSOLIDATED ANNUAL REPORT ON UAP 508
    Link: https://media.defense.gov/2024/Nov/14/2003583603/-1/-1/0/FY24-CONSOLIDATED-ANNUAL-REPORT-ON-UAP-508.PDF

  9. Source: skybrary.aero
    Link: https://skybrary.aero/articles/meteorological-aerodrome-report-metar

  10. Source: faa.gov
    Link: https://www.faa.gov/sites/faa.gov/files/15_phak_ch13.pdf

  11. Source: faa.gov
    Title: FAA H 8083 28A FAA Web
    Link: https://www.faa.gov/sites/faa.gov/files/FAA-H-8083-28A_FAA_Web.pdf

  12. Source: science.nasa.gov
    Link: https://science.nasa.gov/uap/

  13. Source: metoffice.gov.uk
    Title: whats the difference between mist fog and haze
    Link: https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/blog/2025/whats-the-difference-between-mist-fog-and-haze

  14. Source: metoffice.gov.uk
    Title: caa case study 1 high pressure
    Link: https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/binaries/content/assets/metofficegovuk/pdf/services/transport/aviation/case-studies/caa-case-study-1—high-pressure.pdf

  15. Source: metoffice.gov.uk
    Link: https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/binaries/content/assets/metofficegovuk/pdf/services/transport/aviation/training-resources/02413-getmet-update-v6.pdf

  16. Source: metoffice.gov.uk
    Link: https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/services/transport/aviation/regulated/training-resources-for-aviation/abbreviations

  17. Source: digital.nmla.metoffice.gov.uk
    Link: https://digital.nmla.metoffice.gov.uk/download/file/IO_24bec82a-2253-4b3a-b857-d4af319c113f

  18. Source: digital.nmla.metoffice.gov.uk
    Link: https://digital.nmla.metoffice.gov.uk/download/file/IO_a5237e05-8679-4597-95d8-bace02b1fb02

  19. Source: digital.nmla.metoffice.gov.uk
    Link: https://digital.nmla.metoffice.gov.uk/download/file/IO_f7764e9e-7782-42e3-aace-5b8f35617c61

  20. Source: digital.nmla.metoffice.gov.uk
    Link: https://digital.nmla.metoffice.gov.uk/download/file/IO_c2c98752-8303-41d8-bf41-7cd41589cce0

  21. Source: weather.gov
    Link: https://www.weather.gov/media/zhu/ZHU_Training_Page/fog_stuff/fog_definitions/fog.pdf

  22. Source: forecast.weather.gov
    Link: https://forecast.weather.gov/glossary.php?word=C

  23. Source: weather.gov
    Link: https://www.weather.gov/media/publications/front/09dec-front.pdf

  24. Source: aviationweather.gov
    Link: https://aviationweather.gov/help/data/

  25. Source: aviationweather.gov
    Link: https://aviationweather.gov/gfa/?tab=cigvis

  26. Source: aaro.mil
    Link: https://www.aaro.mil/UAP-Cases/Official-UAP-Imagery/

  27. Source: aaro.mil
    Link: https://www.aaro.mil/

  28. Source: medium.com
    Link: https://medium.com/%40pavpanda/ufo-sightings-around-the-world-through-the-eyes-of-data-4e7c34412080

  29. Source: medium.com
    Link: https://medium.com/aliens-landed/aliens-landed-and-discovered-fog-computing-heres-what-they-d-find-weird-%EF%B8%8F-6f017c29756f

  30. Source: ulc.gov.pl
    Link: [https://ulc.gov.pl/download/bezpieczenstow_lotow/ALAR/BN_5.3-Visual_Illusions.pdf](https://ulc.gov.pl/_download/bezpieczenstow_lotow/ALAR/BN_5.3-_Visual_Illusions.pdf)

  31. Source: community.wmo.int
    Title: World Meteorological Organization Aviation
    Link: https://community.wmo.int/site/knowledge-hub/programmes-and-initiatives/aviation/aviation-hazards-low-visibility-and-low-cloud

  32. Source: cloudatlas.wmo.int
    Link: https://cloudatlas.wmo.int/mirage.html

  33. Source: Wikipedia
    Title: Project Blue Book
    Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Blue_Book

  34. Source: Wikipedia
    Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mirage

  35. Source: archives.gov
    Title: Project BLUE BOOK
    Link: https://www.archives.gov/research/military/air-force/ufos

  36. Source: hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu
    Link: https://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/atmos/mirage.html

  37. Source: tarmacview.com
    Title: Meteorological Visibility
    Link: https://www.tarmacview.com/glossary/meteorological-visibility/

  38. Source: journalofscientificexploration.org
    Link: https://journalofscientificexploration.org/index.php/jse/article/view/124/62

  39. Source: britannica.com
    Title: Project Blue Book
    Link: https://www.britannica.com/topic/Project-Blue-Book

  40. Source: ebsco.com
    Link: https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/science/mirage

Additional References

  1. Source: arxiv.org
    Link: https://arxiv.org/html/2502.06794v2

  2. Source: youtube.com
    Title: Identifying Aerial Phenomena: The Role of Weather Data
    Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYJzXf12Y1M
    Source snippet

    Investigating UAP Reports: Separating Objects from Atmospheric Conditions...

  3. Source: cia.gov
    Link: https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/docs/CIA-RDP81R00560R000100040072-9.pdf

  4. Source: youtube.com
    Title: How [Weather Balloons]({{ ‘balloons/’ | relative_url }}) and Atmosphere Affect UFO Sightings
    Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W0yV8sN5R2U
    Source snippet

    Understanding Meteorological Visibility and UFO Reporting...

  5. Source: youtube.com
    Title: Understanding Meteorological Visibility and UFO Reporting
    Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9pG8z9R4GzM
    Source snippet

    Identifying Aerial Phenomena: The Role of Weather Data...

  6. Source: youtube.com
    Title: Mick West: Identifying UAPs and Weather Phenomena
    Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wX-41aJv_gM
    Source snippet

    How Weather Balloons and Atmosphere Affect UFO Sightings...

  7. Source: researchgate.net
    Link: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/272664441_Identification_of_Visibility_Reducing_Weather_Phenomena_Due_to_Aerosols

  8. Source: facebook.com
    Link: [https://www.facebook.com/Boldmethod/posts/1-most-weather-reported-in-a-metar-observation-is-within-__-of-the-airports-l/961050876049994/](https://www.facebook.com/Boldmethod/posts/1-most-weather-reported-in-a-metar-observation-is-within-__-of-the-airports-l/961050876049994/)

  9. Source: researchgate.net
    Link: [https://www.researchgate.net/publication/278390344Instrumented_Monitoring_of_Aerial_Anomalies-A_Scientific_Approach_to_the_Investigation_On_Anomalous_Atmospheric_Light_Phenomena](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/278390344_Instrumented_Monitoring_of_Aerial_Anomalies-_A_Scientific_Approach_to_the_Investigation_On_Anomalous_Atmospheric_Light_Phenomena)

  10. Source: researchgate.net
    Link: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/375267222_Light_refraction_in_the_earth%27s_atmosphere_II_Inferior_mirages_regions_for_images_and_objects_observation

Topic Tree

Follow this branch

Parent topic

IFOs

Related pages 39

More on this topic 5