After careful investigation, UFO reports are often solved. Here are some of the objects that are usually mistaken for UFOs:
-Parachutes may be mistaken for UFOs as they drop through broken clouds. Parachutes are often used for dropping military supplies. Some may require several parachutes, and you may see odd shapes as parachutes fall.
-The hot exhaust of an airplane contains moisture, which condenses in cold air. This forms long ribbons of cloud, called vapor trails. Sometimes it may be broken by the wind, which creates an illusion that sometimes forms a cigar shape. These vapor trails may shine in the sun long after the ground is in darkness.
-Seventeen percent of UFO sightings are identified as a low-flying aircraft. At night, a plane displays a light pattern; red in the left wing tip, green on the right, and white on the tail. As the plane comes into land, it may flash the red light and also the headlight.
-The planet Venus is the most common UFO mistake of all. With all other astronomical objects, it is responsible for more than twenty-seven percent of all UFO's which have been identified. It is the brightest object in the sky after the Sun and the Moon.
-Sometimes even the familiar moon may be unrecognizable. The moon is responsible for up to ninety percent of UFO sightings. When it is partially covered by a cloud or the horizon, the parts that remain visible can look quite unfamiliar, both in color and shape.
-Saucer shaped clouds can be formed by rising air over hills. Known as lenticular (lens-shaped) clouds, they sometimes cluster in 'formations' like a colony of flying saucers.
-Giant balloons are used to carry scientific instruments to the upper atmosphere. From nine to twelve miles altitude, the balloons are bathed in light even though the sun has set on the Earth below. The aluminum fabric of the balloon shines brightly in the sky.
-There are many different kinds of kites, from boxes to diamonds to deltas and bird shapes. Even their tails can cause confusion. A recent American study showed that two out of eight hundred reports investigated were kites.
