# Mysterious UFO Fireball in Florida (video) **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 7, 2008, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mysterious-ufo-fireball-in-florida-video/436693 "2008-02-07T17:42:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![devilsknew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4da419/32.png) [@devilsknew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/devilsknew)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2008, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mysterious-ufo-fireball-in-florida-video/436693/1 "2008-02-07T17:42:41Z")
[The video of this UFO is quite spectacular](http://www.tampabays10.com/news/local/article.aspx?storyid=73320). It appears as a meteor but has a quite discernible double contrail and appears on the skyline for 9 minutes… much too long for a meteor. I suspect it is some kind of military craft, but what kind of craft? Maybe something traveling on the edge of space? ---
**Author:** ![Waverly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/57b2e6/32.png) [@Waverly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Waverly)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2008, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mysterious-ufo-fireball-in-florida-video/436693/2 "2008-02-07T17:47:35Z")
That doesn’t look like a contrail to me. ---
**Author:** ![Rick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2008, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mysterious-ufo-fireball-in-florida-video/436693/3 "2008-02-07T17:50:26Z")
Contrail off of a high flying jet aircraft would be my guess. ---
**Author:** ![RedSwinglineOne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a9adbd/32.png) [@RedSwinglineOne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RedSwinglineOne)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2008, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mysterious-ufo-fireball-in-florida-video/436693/4 "2008-02-07T17:54:11Z")
I couldn’t get the video to work, but I from the picture and description, I think it could be a contrail. If you see one when the sky is just getting dark, but a high flying plane is still in bright sunlight, they can look very bright. The article said it happened at dusk so it makes sense. ---
**Author:** ![devilsknew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4da419/32.png) [@devilsknew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/devilsknew)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2008, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mysterious-ufo-fireball-in-florida-video/436693/5 "2008-02-07T17:56:56Z")
[QUOTE=Rick] Contrail off of a high flying jet aircraft would be my guess. [/QUOTE] But what kind of jet aircraft appears as if it’s engulfed in flame? Even if it were some kind of craft reentering the atmosphere, it wouldn’t appear as a fireball in constancy, would it? ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2008, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mysterious-ufo-fireball-in-florida-video/436693/6 "2008-02-07T18:03:21Z")
[QUOTE=devilsknew] But what kind of jet aircraft appears as if it’s engulfed in flame? Even if it were some kind of craft reentering the atmosphere, it wouldn’t appear as a fireball in constancy, would it? [/QUOTE] At sunset? Sure. ---
**Author:** ![Xema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9de053/32.png) [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2008, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mysterious-ufo-fireball-in-florida-video/436693/7 "2008-02-07T18:54:49Z")
The speed is far too low for it to be any sort of object from space - had to be in the atmosphere. Given that it shows a double contrail and is heading toward the sun, an aircraft with bright sun reflection looks like much the best candidate. ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2008, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mysterious-ufo-fireball-in-florida-video/436693/8 "2008-02-07T19:47:35Z")
Grrr… Can’t watch video at work. ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2008, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mysterious-ufo-fireball-in-florida-video/436693/9 "2008-02-07T19:53:59Z")
[QUOTE=RedSwinglineOne] I couldn’t get the video to work, but I from the picture and description, I think it could be a contrail. If you see one when the sky is just getting dark, but a high flying plane is still in bright sunlight, they can look very bright. The article said it happened at dusk so it makes sense. [/QUOTE] It’s so extremely obvious that it’s a contrail I had to laugh. A pair of contrails, actually. Have people never seen a sunset before? ---
**Author:** ![Trunk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/87869e/32.png) [@Trunk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trunk)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2008, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mysterious-ufo-fireball-in-florida-video/436693/10 "2008-02-07T19:55:42Z")
[QUOTE=devilsknew] But what kind of jet aircraft appears as if it’s engulfed in flame? [/QUOTE] The _Phoenix_.