what was the fiery red star like object I saw?

[omegaman]

Hello,

It was approx. Monday night at about 11.30pm that I spotted a large fiery red, with a hint of whitish/yellowy star like object just above the roof tops of houses. It was in a South East direction.

Viewing it with the naked eyes, it looks alot bigger than Saturn or Mars and through the bino's, it looks pretty much like a red chinese lantern.

It remained in the same spot for quite some minutes until it disappeared from view past the houses.

Can anyone shed some light on whether this was a planet?

Its the first time I have seen it.

Thanks in advance.

Jeff

[Talitha]

Hi Jeff, i've no idea what it was that you saw, but if it 'set' in the SE, then it wasn't a planet.

[abumuhannadh]

nor was it a star, if it 'set' in the SE

[ollypenrice]

Why not a Chinese lantern as you imply?

Olly

[Earl]

I saw a lantern two nights ago... off it floated... I hope it didn't land somewhere it should not of.

[omegaman]

Why not a Chinese lantern as you imply?

Olly

I didn't think it was a chinese lantern, although it resembled one, because it stayed fixed at the same spot for quite some minutes before it decended behind the houses and out of sight.

From where I was standing, the houses where about 1/4 mile away and the object above the house was looked approx. 3 times the size of Saturn on the same night.

If I see it again, I will record more detailed co-ordinates.

Thanks.

[The Sailor]

This had me laughing, as on Saturday I was out in the garden and had been APing on Saturn. I happened to turn and I seen just below Mars what I took to be a very bright orange object, slighty larger than Mars. As I watched it changed shape and brightness and I thought at once an air accident. Raced throught the house calling to SWMBO to follow and from the front garden I showed her, she thought the same as me. Ran back and tried to slew the scope to it but it dissapeared quickly, a bit shaken by what I had seen I turned to look at her and she had a smile of sympthy on her face, one you have for a pet. She was pointing and following her finger I seen a Chinese lantern rising over the next block and head into the sky to almost the same place as my "air accident". Did I feel a pillock, so there you are, we all see what is not there .

Jim

[BazMark]

The first time I saw a chinese lantern I was stargazing with my 10 year old daughter and she thought it was an alien UFO and she got real frightened. I don't know what she'd been watching.

I didn't know what it was and got real excited especially when I saw a second one about an hour later. Then I posted a question on one of these forums. After the replies I got I then realised I'd picked up the remnants of one in my back garden a few weeks before after the snow melted and remembered wondering what it was. Since then I've seen quite a few.

Depending on the wind conditions they can float along at quite a pace or they may just float straight up till they reach their ceiling and just hang there till the fuel block runs out. I've since read that livestock farmers don't like them as the wire in them sometimes gets chopped up in the fodder that is fed to their animals when the remnants of them land in fields. However, they are quite eye catching when you see them.

[Hypernova]

I saw one last night rising from the estate to my west, it had a cross painted on it (world cup?). I watched it rise higher and higher until it went out and it started tumbling earthwards. Saw it sink lower to the south of me and finally lost it coming down over the North end of Crewe somewhere. I wonder whose responsibility it is if it lands on a road and causes a major accident?