The Denbigh Lights UFO Analysis - Jan 2012 - [Likely sparking powerlines]

[Mick West]

[UPDATE August 2025 - this case has been solved as sparking power lines, with confirmation from the power company. See: https://www.metabunk.org/threads/al...-likely-sparking-powerlines.10546/post-350637 ]


Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lSJ81C0cULo


"Footage of spooky spinning UFO in Wales declared GENUINE by expert" says the Daily Star. They then show this shaky footage of some lights moving over some houses [Dated Jan 3, 2012, around 3am]. They quote the expert, Jason Gleaves, talking about the footage. He did some analysis, including finding a photo taken from the same window as the sighting, which he overlaid it onto a single frame of the video.

Jason concluding various things including:

• That it was something rotating, like the lights were rotating around a central disc.
• That it was ABOVE the treeline, hence some kind of flying craft, a flying, rotating saucer type thing.

I thought I'd do a bit more analysis. The original video was very shaky so I took it into After Effects and ran an image stabilization using two lights as reference points. This immediately showed that it didn't really look like it was rotating, it was a bunch of lights traveling in one direction at fairly constant speed, with varying brightness and visibility. Then I wanted to align the daylight image a bit better, so I took fifty frames or so from the stabilized video, and did a photo stack using a median stack mode, which removes the noise.

This can then be overlaid on the stabilized video, bringing out the detail.
[compare]

[/compare]

Using this more detailed version I aligned the daylight photo more accurately We can now see that the lights are not in the sky, they are actually just on or under the ridgeline. So it seems more likely these lights on the ground, and the variations in brightness and visibility are them going behind obstructions like trees.

So what is up on that hill? I recreated the scene in Google Earth, marking some possible roads.

There were two contenders - the blue road here leads up to an interesting air navigation thing but it's facing away from the camera. The red line here is more likely, it's a path on the golf course. If there were, say, a bunch of people in golf carts or bikes driving along that path, or nearby, then it would look like what you see here. Of course, it could also be aliens driving along the golf path. But what seems more likely?

Now I have NOT solved this case. I don't know what this is. It's still unidentified. I've just shown it's probably not rotating, and it's probably not in the sky. But I do know it's a mistake to draw any kind of definitive conclusion from poor quality data like a shaky video. It's also not a good idea to believe in experts, even me, just because they are saying what you really want to be true. Keep an open mind

 

[jarlrmai]

There's a bit of a craze for night time mountain bike riding because of cheap powerful LED bike lights.

 

[purpleivan]

There's a bit of a craze for night time mountain bike riding because of cheap powerful LED bike lights.

I'd had the same thought, as I'd be surprised if golf carts had lights of any significance, as I'd expect that anywhere golf is played at night, there'd be very strong lighting already.

 

[Leifer]

Experienced nighttime bicycle riders will often have fixed cycle lights, as well as helmet lights, so when they turn their heads, they can see wherever their head is turned. It's the safe way for night riding.
It also could have been a family or group, out for a walk, with flashlights.

 

[Alexandria Nick]

I'd had the same thought, as I'd be surprised if golf carts had lights of any significance, as I'd expect that anywhere golf is played at night, there'd be very strong lighting already.

Many do, because they see use in low light conditions regularly or as vehicles other than golf transportation, especially in maintenance tasks at golf courses.

For instance, the house I grew up in overlooked a club's driving range. They shut down the lighting at around 9 PM, but they were out there collecting balls for another hour or so in darkness, except for the cart's headlights.

 

[purpleivan]

Many do, because they see use in low light conditions regularly or as vehicles other than golf transportation, especially in maintenance tasks at golf courses.

For instance, the house I grew up in overlooked a club's driving range. They shut down the lighting at around 9 PM, but they were out there collecting balls for another hour or so in darkness, except for the cart's headlights.

I just did the obvious thing and searched for golf carts, and many do indeed have lights. Golf at night (or in low light) just didn't strike me as a thing that people did (never played it myself). But as you say, even if no-one was playing golf at that time, it could still be maintenance workers using them.

 

[Trailblazer]

So what is up on that hill? I recreated the scene in Google Earth, marking some possible roads.

There were two contenders - the blue road here leads up to an interesting air navigation thing but it's facing away from the camera. The red line here is more likely, it's a path on the golf course. If there were, say, a bunch of people in golf carts or bikes driving along that path, or nearby, then it would look like what you see here. Of course, it could also be aliens driving along the golf path. But what seems more likely?

I just had a look at the Strava Global Heatmap, which visualises the tracks saved by people using the Strava exercise tracking app.

With "cycling" selected, you can see there seems to be a fairly popular mountain-biking circuit in those woods to the right of the screenshot above:

 

[Mick West]

With "cycling" selected, you can see there seems to be a fairly popular mountain-biking circuit in those woods to the right of the screenshot above:

Interesting. Although that path (green, below) seems to be not in the right place and is also rather hilly which would give much more irregular light movement.

It's marked on the OS map, as are a variety of paths and tracks.
https://osmaps.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/53.19521,-3.43563,17

Still, quite possible some late-night cyclists decided to add in a loop or two around the golf course for fun.

The "air nav thing" is actually a covered reservoir. The white markings are where it was repaired.

 

[cloudspotter]

It's marked on the OS map, as are a variety of paths and tracks.
https://osmaps.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/53.19521,-3.43563,17
View attachment 36912

Bikers shouldn't really be using the paths around there as they are marked Footpaths and not Bridleways, but that doesn't tend to stop people

 

[sweepleader]

I'm going with aliens on bikes and golf carts, they have a proven history of ignoring our laws and regulations, plus they can use their laser eyes to see the golf balls in the dark.

 

[deirdre]

plus they can use their laser eyes to see the golf balls in the dark.

they have all those tracker things they stick up people's noses. they probably just stick them in the balls during manufacturing.

 

[TEEJ]

From UAP Files Podcast - Nathan Thomas now in his late 20s, who filmed the footage, gives an interview. Mick is mentioned in the video. The podcaster makes the incorrect claim, in my opinion, that the lights are in the sky.


Source: https://youtu.be/xSoUnjAUzro

 

[jonnyH]

It's highly unlikely that Denbigh Golf Club has golf carts. Not that many clubs in the UK do, and they would tend to be the more exclusive ones or those attached to a hotel rather than small rural clubs with lower than average membership fees like Denbigh. They would certainly mention it on the website if they did (they don't).

Night cyclists is a much better hypothesis.

 

[TEEJ]

It's highly unlikely that Denbigh Golf Club has golf carts. Not that many clubs in the UK do, and they would tend to be the more exclusive ones or those attached to a hotel rather than small rural clubs with lower than average membership fees like Denbigh. They would certainly mention it on the website if they did (they don't).

Night cyclists is a much better hypothesis.

Golf carts at Denbigh as of 2025 website.

https://www.denbighgolfclub.co.uk/visitors/open-competitions/

 

[JMartJr]

They have (or have had at some point) at least one -- of not available to golfers, they might have one or two on hand for use of staff?

I suppose they'd also have mowers and such...

 

[Ravi]

A bit annoying the witness does not want to believe it is on the ground even though there is a good analysis done of the lights. Well, you can't stop True Believers.

 

[Mick West]

A bit annoying the witness does not want to believe it is on the ground even though there is a good analysis done of the lights. Well, you can't stop True Believers.

Similar to this case, where the witness was convinced the lights were in the sky:
https://www.metabunk.org/threads/bullhead-city-arizona-lights-in-the-sky.13793/

3D reconstruction is fiddly, and there's a lot of wiggle room if you don't understand it fully or if the data is low quality.

The original witness in both cases had a strong impression that led to lots of interest, which reinforced that impression.

And as I say here (with not the best data, six years ago)

Now I have NOT solved this case. I don't know what this is. It's still unidentified. I've just shown it's probably not rotating, and it's probably not in the sky. But I do know it's a mistake to draw any kind of definitive conclusion from poor quality data like a shaky video. It's also not a good idea to believe in experts, even me, just because they are saying what you really want to be true. Keep an open mind

 

[purpleivan]

If this piece on the North Wales Live webiite, is correct, then Denbigh Golf Club has had trolleys and "buggys" for hire since at least April 2016.
dailypost.co.uk/whats-on/whats-on-news/north-wales-18-hole-golf-9413112

Would I be correct in assuming that "buggys" are another name for "carts", regarding golf equipment.

 

[purpleivan]

I just now checked the Denbigh Golf Club site on Internet Archive and in 2016, the site advertised on the "Course Photos" page, a "Green Fee Offer" of 4 balls and 2 buggies for "only £99.99". So if buggies are the same as carts, then they did have them at least as early as March 2016.

archive.org/web/20160331093900/http://www.denbighgolfclub.co.uk/about-us/aboutus/coursephotos/

 

[JMartJr]

Would I be correct in assuming that "buggys" are another name for "carts", regarding golf equipment.

The name seems to encompass golf carts, but also just little wheeled racks to grag behind you and carry your clubs -- I'm seeing everything from this:

to this:

... called a "golf buggy, so the term seems to be imprecise! But of a range that includes things like these:

 

[MonkeeSage]

Three carts parked behind the green shed:

Source: https://www.denbighgolfclub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/5214/2015/07/image1.jpg

The image URL (along with the one from the image @JMartJr posted above with a cart on the trail, https://www.denbighgolfclub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/5214/2015/07/image2.jpg) indicate they were uploaded in 2015, so they seem to have had carts there for at least that long.

 

[John J.]

Would I be correct in assuming that "buggys" are another name for "carts", regarding golf equipment.

I know nothing about golf, but yeah, it seems golf buggies and golf carts are the same; did an image search "golf buggies for sale uk";

(snip of screen, not edited).

No shortage of golf carts in the UK as far as I can tell, e.g. the company Motorculture sells a variety from single seaters to 6-seaters, https://newgolfbuggies.co.uk/, a large headline on their homepage says

New & Used Golf Buggies from Motorculture Ltd

 

[MapperGuy]

From UAP Files Podcast - Nathan Thomas now in his late 20s, who filmed the footage, gives an interview. Mick is mentioned in the video. The podcaster makes the incorrect claim, in my opinion, that the lights are in the sky.


Source: https://youtu.be/xSoUnjAUzro

At 4:30 in this video they show a view of the lights with a red line across it labeled "Estimated Tree Line / Crestwoods horizon". Estimated? How about a nice daytime photo showing exactly where it is?
The reconstruction in Micks video (first post in this thread) shows where the lights and horizon are.
With the buildings in the foreground illuminated by the street lights a very accurate reconstruction is possible.

 

[flarkey]

Avid golfer here (Handicap 8) - Golf buggies as they are called in the UK (Carts in the US) tend not to have lights on them because people dont usually play golf in the dark. Yes, some buggies/carts can have lights, but it is unlikely to see them in the UK.

Also, lets not forget when this was - 3am in January. Brrrr.

 

[flarkey]

Just had a thought regarding this.... Whilst trying to find the original source of the video, Google AI gave me this summary..... note "during a stormy night"

Source

And that reminded me of this case that was initially reported as ball lighting that was seen during a storm.. That turned out to be an electrical fault on a powerline...

https://www.metabunk.org/threads/ap...rich-valley-alberta-canada.14314/#post-348055

Could this be the same phenomenon? ie electrical faults arcing during a storm?

There was definitely a storm over the UK on that date...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyclone_Ulli
https://weather.metoffice.gov.uk/bi...er-storms-early-january-2012---met-office.pdf

The storm caused power cuts around the UK on 3rd January 2012.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-16390088

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-16389033

Looking at the area that @Mick West geolocated - I checked Google Street view to see if there was a power line in the area, and yes there is.... (Streetview linky)

I think the watertank is used for irrigation at the golf club. It is just east of the 14th green.

View of the overhead cables from the 14th Green (Source)

This clip shows how the overhead cables run through the treeline: (source)

The powerline runs on a similar line and aspect to the path along the golf club up towards the water tank.

This is the approx view from the witness location...

I haven't been able to determine if there was a reported power line fault in Denbigh on the night of 2/3 January 2012 yet.

 

[Trailblazer]

I'm not convinced that the daytime reference image is taken from the same angle as the night video.

Look at the streetlight, just behind the "A" of "Above". The lamp is well above the bottom of roof of the house below the "UFO" lights (in the middle of the view). And the bottom of the roof on the nearer house on the left appears quite a bit higher than that of the house in the middle.

In the night-time video, the streetlight seems to be more or less in line with the bottom roofline of the middle house, and the roofline of the left-hand house is also more or less in line.

That suggests to me that the night-time video was taken from a higher elevation than the daytime photo - which would also mean the distant lights are lower than the overlay in the OP video implies.

 

[flarkey]

They do seem to be taken from different heights. Pretty sure this is the location of the daytime photo.

Streetview

And the video (streetview)

 

[Trailblazer]

They do seem to be taken from different heights. Pretty sure this is the location of the daytime photo.

Streetview


And the video (streetview)

The boy who filmed it, Nathan Thomas, says he was in his bedroom, which suggests it was upstairs.


Source: https://www.instagram.com/reel/C9dTvLsNkTy/

 

[flarkey]

The line of sight from that location does fit with the two houses and the hill top. Slightly revised from my initial location.

 

[Trailblazer]

The house at the left of the video is 17 Bryn Garth.

Lining up the street light and the chimney I would say the vid was shot from the upstairs back window of number 31 or maybe 32.

That's these windows here, looking back in the other direction

 

[Trailblazer]

This is the best I can line it up with a shot fron the exact bedroom window.

With transparency:

It seems pretty clear that the lights are at ground level, shining through trees.

 

[flarkey]

Full frame shot from the @UAPF video also suggests those bedroom windows.

 

[Trailblazer]

I don't understand what this arrow is meant to be pointing at, at 4:54. Is the video trying to imply that the two arrows are pointing at the same thing in both frames?

The street light seen in the night-time video is here. Nowhere near the arrowed location. The left hand arrow here seems to be pointing vaguely at a telephone pole, not the street light.

Phone pole and street light, for reference, from street level not bedroom height.

 

[flarkey]

I think now that it has been shown that there was a severe storm on the night of the video, and the fact that the video was recorded at 3am - the hypotheses that this is either 1) mountain bikers with head torches, or 2) golf buggies racing with headlights are both extremely unlikely. Also the alien space ship hypothesis seems rather unlikely too.

I think the suggestion that a fallen tree caused electrical arcing in the nearby powerline to be much more likely. Here's an example of what it can look like, and this seems to match what is seen in the original video.


Source: https://youtube.com/shorts/wYvRO55jj4s?si=7G9Tvf3nNwet2sGh

I have emailed the local utility provider ( https://www.spenergynetworks.co.uk/ ) to see if I can get any records of powerline faults in the Denbigh area on 3 January 2012, but I'm not hopeful.

Edit - some others in this thread (including someone called @Eburacum ) have also suggested arcing of power lines that supply electricity to the reservoir pumps: https://forums.forteana.org/index.php?threads/latest-reports-of-ufo-sightings.29913/page-53

I suspect the arcing occurred at the point where the power line routes through the trees..

 

[Trailblazer]

I suspect the arcing occurred at the point where the power line routes through the trees..

Drawing a line from that power line segment, back to the window pinpointed in the video, shows pretty good alignment.

The line of sight passes right between the houses and chimneys visible from that window, labelled here:

 

[Gaspa]

Edit - some others in this thread (including someone called @Eburacum ) have also suggested arcing of power lines that supply electricity to the reservoir pumps: https://forums.forteana.org/index.php?threads/latest-reports-of-ufo-sightings.29913/page-53


I suspect the arcing occurred at the point where the power line routes through the trees..

From the Eburacum post

It might be arcing, but I doubt it would last long, unless they have very inefficient circuit breakers".

I can't speak for Wales, or the UK in general, but from my experience in Brazil, such "inefficient circuit breakers" are not unlikely to be in place in rural areas like this one. If it's just a very local line meant to power the pumps, I wouldn't be surprised that they didn't bother with quick response breakers.

 

[JMartJr]

I think now that it has been shown that there was a severe storm on the night of the video, and the fact that the video was recorded at 3am - the hypotheses that this is either 1) mountain bikers with head torches, or 2) golf buggies racing with headlights are both extremely unlikely.

I'd offer a slightly different take --given that there were storms in the area that had done some damage, it does not seem hugely unlikely that after the storm had passed in a given area vehicles would be heading out to assess damage , or flip breakers back on, or whatever else a golf course staff would do after a storm. Me, I'd wait until the Sun was up, but some bosses are "go do it now." I don't have a sense of the relative likelihood of that vs. of arcing, but I don't think it can be ruled out.

Also the alien space ship hypothesis seems rather unlikely too.

Agreed on that point, unreservedly.

Yes, some buggies/carts can have lights, but it is unlikely to see them in the UK.

On the other hand, if somebody is out driving on a stormy night, for whatever reason, they're likely to be in a vehicle with lights! The circumstances of the picture (at night, at a distance) sort of pre-selects for the cases, however uncommon, of the vehicle having lights on it.

Even if the golf carts/buggies for use of golfers did not have lights, a grounds keeper's vehicle might be more likely to, something like this...

 

[Ann K]

There are obviously lights on in the town, but if the storm caused power outages nearby, might the moving lights have been utility trucks doing repairs and/or inspections through the night?

I see @JMartJr and I had the same notion at the same time.

 

[flarkey]

I'd offer a slightly different take --given that there were storms in the area that had done some damage, it does not seem hugely unlikely that after the storm had passed in a given area vehicles would be heading out to assess damage , or flip breakers back on, or whatever else a golf course staff would do after a storm. Me, I'd wait until the Sun was up, but some bosses are "go do it now." I don't have a sense of the relative likelihood of that vs. of arcing, but I don't think it can be ruled out.

Even if the golf carts/buggies for use of golfers did not have lights, a grounds keeper's vehicle might be more likely to, something like this...

If I'm honest I'd think the crashed alien spaceship (crashed due to the weather, obviously!) is more likely than a groundskeeper being out in the storm at 3am. Consider how this might be done with vehicles and how it might look, compared to what we can actually see in the video. One, maybe two vehicles driving up to a point to assess damage would not appear as bright lights continually moving (described as "mini explosions" by the witnesses) for half an hour, and then suddenly stopping.

Quote source https://www.sufon.co.uk/post/the-denbigh-lights-the-ufo-in-wales-declared-real

Alex said, 'It was a disc shape and I could see mini explosions in the light but it definitely wasn't fireworks because we had the window open and there was no sound.

After we stopped filming we watched it for about half an hour and then next minute it was on an angle and was spinning and then it just stopped, the lights went out and it was gone."

This is the original video, it should start at the right time code. The random appearance and disappearance of the lights, their motion, the way they increase in intensity very quickly and then move as if blown by the wind (westerly wind would be from the left) and then seem to burn out and on occasion fall to the ground. I'd bet a dollar it was arcing electrical cabling.


Source: https://youtu.be/txjIyNZ85Qs?t=229

 

[JMartJr]

If I'm honest I'd think the crashed alien spaceship (crashed due to the weather, obviously!) is more likely than a groundskeeper being out in the storm at 3am. Consider how this might be done with vehicles and how it might look, compared to what we can actually see in the video...

You make a strong case, I'm certainly not arguing that you are wrong!

But I may need to clarify, my thought was not that anybody would be out IN the storm, but that damage assessment/repair might start pretty hard on the heels of it passing, "passing" being a local thing; storms might remain over the country for days, but have passed a given spot by 3 am... at which point somebody might be out flipping a breaker back on or assessing how many tree removers will be needed in the morning...