Case File Status: Solved
Background
The following case was submitted to The Black Vault / TBV Investigations on January 11, 2018. It was assigned to TBV Investigations team member Rob Mercer for investigation.
Witness Testimony
The following was submitted by the witness in the original report submission:
“While viewing Orion I sighted and photographed 3 objects moving together. 8” Meade with Zwo cameras linke to Surface Pro laptop. Captured three objects. “
The Evidence
Video compilation of the photographs
Photograph Gallery
The Analysis
The Amazonas 3 Satellite overhead at the time of the sighting.
I spoke with the witness by telephone regarding his sighting report, he stated that while looking through the camera he noticed the three objects moving together and began taking photos. Between 5:49:06 and 5:49:48pm PST he captured 14 images, which he submitted.
By the time I contacted the witness, he had already done research on his own and discovered the Amazonas 3 satellite was passing in the same area at the time.
Though the three objects appear to move together as one, it is apparent that they are not one solid object. Stars can be seen between them as they move.
A search of the Stellarium database showed three satellites (Amazonas 3, Echostar 18, and Echostar 16) moving through the same area and direction of the sky at that time.
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- Echostar 16 Satellite
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- Echostar 18 Satellite
Corresponding Cases
No other reports of this event were found.
Conclusion
It is my belief that what the witness saw and captured in photos, were most likely the three mentioned satellites moving together.
Meta Data
Meta Data was submitted for each photo. The settings were the same, and are located below:
[ZWO ASI224MC]
Pan=0
Tilt=0
Output Format=AVI files (*.avi)
Binning=1
Capture Area=1304×976
Colour Space=RGB24
Temperature=20.2
Hardware Binning=Off
High Speed Mode=Off
Turbo USB=100(Auto)
Flip=None
Frame Rate Limit=Maximum
Gain=400
Exposure=1
Timestamp Frames=Off
White Bal (B)=95
White Bal (R)=52
Brightness=1
Gamma=50
Auto Exp Max Gain=400
Auto Exp Max Exp M S=30000
Auto Exp Target Brightness=100
Mono Bin=Off
Apply Flat=None
Subtract Dark=None
Display Brightness=1
Display Contrast=1
Display Gamma=1
Comments
Special Thanks & Credits
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Originating Organization: The Black Vault / TBV Investigations
