Reddit thread [12/16 UA2359 ORD to EWR] lights in the sky

[jarlrmai]

Source: https://www.reddit.com/r/UFOs/comments/1hg2sgs/1216_ua2359_ord_to_ewr/


This thread shows a lot of lights seen from an an aircraft departing Chicago

The information provided is pretty good

These are all short clips from a lot of video I took during my flight from Chicago to Newark on 12/16/24. The flashing blue lights were interesting because I was not actually able to see that with my naked eye.
The flight was UA2359.
*more details
Camera: iPhone 16 Pro Max
Didn't notice a reaction from other passengers but I was also glued to my window.
Started noticing the objects ~20m into the flight and then towards the end of the flight. The objects show more detail than I noticed with my naked eye.
I'll post the full uncut video to YouTube tomorrow for everyone's viewing pleasure.
Videos from at 4:51pm - 7:08pm

Could these just be all the traffic stacked up to land at Chicago

Maybe this is a good testbed for Sitrec with multiple KMLs @Mick West

 

[flarkey]

https://www.flightradar24.com/data/flights/ua2359#385fc272

High res source videos:

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9oKEink9NYQ
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oj5fyxeH6jM
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8PDrabW5lQ
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zGxxNV-Jme0

There's some iphone focus scanner reflection effect in there too

This is Venus:

 

[substantials]

I downloaded this video in 1080p (@flarkey looks like you missed including it in your source list, there were more sources cited). I am unsure what to make of it yet. Plane appears to be completely surrounded by glowing and blinking crafts. If I am allowed to say that. If not, please let me know!

Im currently trying to convert it to a postable format, it has no audio stream in 1080p, appears the upload mechanism wont accept it that way. Second.

There we go ^

 

[jarlrmai]

If the timestamps were accurate we could probably get the flight numbers of those craft.

 

[substantials]

Heres a portion of the video at 7:31 where they zoom in on one of the crafts, appears to be traveling above them going opposite their heading? I see some lights blinking on it as well.

 

[jarlrmai]

Heres a portion of the video at 7:31 where they zoom in on one of the crafts, appears to be traveling above them going opposite their heading? I see some lights blinking on it as well.

View attachment 74929

Yes because they are airliners.

 

[substantials]

Yes because they are airliners.

Case closed then.

 

[flarkey]

If the timestamps were accurate we could probably get the flight numbers of those craft.

The timestamp on the ADSB track will be accurate. I think this is part of the video is the last part of the flight as they descend towards landing. I think there's enough motion seen in the video to crossreference the two and get an accurate timestamp for the video - but is it worth it? Seems like a lot of work to just show that the planes are planes?

 

[substantials]

but is it worth it?

I don't think so. @jarlrmai already told us what they were. We should respect senior members here.

I cant do anything right lol.

 

[jarlrmai]

Really I just want timestamps for the video from the OP, they give a range in the OP like

Videos from at 4:51pm - 7:08pm

But the 4 videos cover only <40 mins

At 4:51 local time the plane they were on was just taking off at OHP, so those lights are probably stacked landers on approach to OHP.

 

[flarkey]

Some other detailed analysis already done on Reddit


Source: https://www.reddit.com/r/UFOs/comments/1hg2sgs/comment/m2g9d2l/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button

 

[jarlrmai]

That analysis is flawed IMO

OP says

Videos from at 4:51pm - 7:08pm

So Video 1 apparently starts at 4:51 (22:51 UTC)

https://www.flightaware.com/live/flight/N37462/history/20241216/2200Z/KORD/KEWR

Fits with

Started noticing the objects ~20m into the flight and then towards the end of the flight.

 

[flarkey]

Really I just want timestamps for the video from the OP, they give a range in the OP like

Videos from at 4:51pm - 7:08pm

But the 4 videos cover only <40 mins

At 4:51 local time the plane they were on was just taking off at OHP, so those lights are probably stacked landers on approach to OHP.

So is that start or finish time of the videos, and which Time Zone?

I'm assuming it is Chicago time, so UTC-6.

That would put the first video here: 4:51pm = 22.51pm UTC (seems about right.)

So then the last video 7:08pm UTC-6 = 0108am UTC , but the plane landed at 0037am UTC, so this must be UTC-5 = New York Time.

Then its 0008hrs, whick puts him here, as I previously suggested.

 

[jarlrmai]

Well if they are using 2 time zones interchangeably then who knows anything, they just need to share the original files with UTC timestamps.

 

[jarlrmai]

Is this Chicago?

 

[flarkey]

Is this Chicago?

View attachment 74935

I think that's Gary, Indiana

 

[Marbelou]

Does anyone have other examples of videos (pre Nov) that would show something similar? I've been going through a bunch of Youtube videos taken from airplane windows and cockpits but haven't found a comparable reference just yet. I'll continue my search later today but if someone has a link I would appreciate it.

 

[EasilyAmused]

Hello everyone, this is the OP. I added the time stamps as they appeared on the metadata for the videos to my reddit comment with all the details. Hopefully that helps you all out. Let me know if there are other questions I can help answer.

https://www.reddit.com/r/UFOs/s/lrC5QRepao

4:51 PM
Source: https://youtu.be/9oKEink9NYQ?si=JBhSd5VUyCXlQN0k


6:11 PM
Source: https://youtu.be/oj5fyxeH6jM?si=S2cW5oVKOzF9RIxS


6:23 PM
Source: https://youtu.be/R8PDrabW5lQ?si=mkfqbc2YebWbrCb1


7:08PM
Source: https://youtu.be/zGxxNV-Jme0?si=7dbrkwCwVEJFrw5Z

 

[jarlrmai]

Can you share the actual video files from your device, via Google drive? Or just attach them to this thread.

 

[Mick West]

Can you share the actual video files from your device, via Google drive? Or just attach them to this thread.

He sent them to me:

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/7g84...pbhgnLFk?rlkey=rxppp4uasls65b0bi3fbjrd36&dl=0

creationdate is always the most accurate. Note the change in time zone from the first.

 

[madakovic]

Ordinary planes like here,
Source: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/flUhEyksAE8

For me prove is similar Saturn ring like shapes which are airplane wings seeing from long distances.

 

[jarlrmai]

METAR for KORD for 1st video

METAR KORD 162251Z 26013G24KT 10SM OVC010 05/03 A2992 RMK AO2 PK WND 28031/2237 SLP134 T00500028=

So 1000 ft AGL cloud layer relatively low cloud base which seems to reflect the video, hard to know full depth of cloud though filming plane at 5000 feet

This is the the view from the starboard side of the plane, over a dozen planes stacked for landing at KORD all would have landing lights on.

 

[JMartJr]

For me prove is similar Saturn ring like shapes which are airplane wings seeing from long distances.

Maybe, but I notice that the lights on the ground tend to be elongated horizontally s well... that may be due to the camera moving/panning?

 

[jarlrmai]

The middle three videos 7377, 7380, 7381 taken from 23:11 UTC seem to show Venus which would have been bright and highly visible to the south to south west from the starboard side of the aircraft.

 

[Mick West]

Here's a Sitrec with the flight
https://www.metabunk.org/sitrec/?cu...com/1/EasilyAmused - Venus/20241217_204314.js

That would be looking back a bit, basically along the wing, which seems consistent with the videos.

 

[Eotvos]

Yes because they are airliners.

First video (watch?v=9oKEink9NYQ), timestamp 5:50.

The object in the foreground is an airliner. FAA compliant lights makes it obvious imo.

The object (light) in the background? I don't know. Does not appear like the plane next to it.

As the airliner appears on footage a few seconds earlier, it seems it is going "towards" the object and later makes a turn before reaching it. But the airliner could just be gaining altitude and it only appears from our perspective that it is closing in on the other object.

That "light" does not seem to be on the ground, background seems cloudy and nothing in the vicinity is glowing. If a previous poster is right, it is Gary, Indiana so the light should be above water, the only possibility is a ship. But it seems like the streets in the background don't align to the light, indicating a parralax effect, meaning the light is not ground level. That is my conclusion from just watching the footage, don't have time to analize it atm.

I never used the flight app to find planes so I would be grateful is someone could find a plane matching what we see. What is certain that both objects are closer to the ground than the cameraman.

Since there is an unidentified object AND an airliner in the same shot looking quite a bit different I would not claim these lights are airliners just yet.

 

[jarlrmai]

First video (watch?v=9oKEink9NYQ), timestamp 5:50.

The object in the foreground is an airliner. FAA compliant lights makes it obvious imo.

The object (light) in the background? I don't know. Does not appear like the plane next to it.

As the airliner appears on footage a few seconds earlier, it seems it is going "towards" the object and later makes a turn before reaching it. But the airliner could just be gaining altitude and it only appears from our perspective that it is closing in on the other object.

That "light" does not seem to be on the ground, background seems cloudy and nothing in the vicinity is glowing. If a previous poster is right, it is Gary, Indiana so the light should be above water, the only possibility is a ship. But it seems like the streets in the background don't align to the light, indicating a parralax effect, meaning the light is not ground level. That is my conclusion from just watching the footage, don't have time to analize it atm.

I never used the flight app to find planes so I would be grateful is someone could find a plane matching what we see. What is certain that both objects are closer to the ground than the cameraman.

Since there is an unidentified object AND an airliner in the same shot looking quite a bit different I would not claim these lights are airliners just yet.

Please don't take my reply out of context I am replying to the comment about the craft with blinking lights.

 

[Eotvos]

That footage also shows two similar light sources which don't blink, some which do, and one distinct airliner with identifiable FAA compliant lights. So an actual airliner next to something I cannot identify. Just like the example I showed you.

Nothing was taken out of context since your post only said "they are airliners". Plural. I hope you understand how it could be misleading if you try to describe one plane with the plural form "airliners", especially if the video shows a bunch of objects in the sky.

 

[jarlrmai]

The comment was about craft with blinking lights, when I say these are airliners, I mean craft with blinking lights are airliners. It was not an attempt to describe everything in the video as airliners.

 

[cptreynolds]

First video (watch?v=9oKEink9NYQ), timestamp 5:50.

The object in the foreground is an airliner. FAA compliant lights makes it obvious imo.

The object (light) in the background? I don't know. Does not appear like the plane next to it.

As the airliner appears on footage a few seconds earlier, it seems it is going "towards" the object and later makes a turn before reaching it. But the airliner could just be gaining altitude and it only appears from our perspective that it is closing in on the other object.

That "light" does not seem to be on the ground, background seems cloudy and nothing in the vicinity is glowing. If a previous poster is right, it is Gary, Indiana so the light should be above water, the only possibility is a ship. But it seems like the streets in the background don't align to the light, indicating a parralax effect, meaning the light is not ground level. That is my conclusion from just watching the footage, don't have time to analize it atm.

I never used the flight app to find planes so I would be grateful is someone could find a plane matching what we see. What is certain that both objects are closer to the ground than the cameraman.

Since there is an unidentified object AND an airliner in the same shot looking quite a bit different I would not claim these lights are airliners just yet.

If we're looking at the same video, that non-blinking object seems to shine bright, then briefly fade out and then turn into a blinking object about 20 seconds after your timestamp.

To my admittedly not-very-recently-trained eye it could be consistent with an aircraft that's viewed head-on-ish at first (landing lights on, crowded airspace at low altitude and such), then either turning left or being viewed more from the side due change in relative bearing with own aircraft. It may either turn off the landing lights or be briefly obscured by a close-by cloud during the "encounter".

That's just a cursory glance on the phone, someone with a bigger screen might see more (or disagree).

 

[jarlrmai]

The last video is taken during descent to land at Newark which is amongst the busiest airspace in the world, not to mention very populated with ground lights and tall buildings etc

In the other videos it's fairly obvious what is considered to be the anomalies, however for the last video, we'd need whatever was considered to be anomalous to be pointed out to us, otherwise we are left trying to explain many lights that are not doing anything, at least to my eye, unusual.

 

[madakovic]

Maybe, but I notice that the lights on the ground tend to be elongated horizontally s well... that may be due to the camera moving/panning?
View attachment 74959

Some part are elongated due to movement, but generaly this oval elipsoid shape is very similar. This is example where there is no cam moving because you can clearly see the airport name, and the oval airplane shape is still present. When you combine it with morning sun reflections the shape looks very similar to me.

 

[Ravi]

The last video is taken during descent to land at Newark which is amongst the busiest airspace in the world, not to mention very populated with ground lights and tall buildings etc

In the other videos it's fairly obvious what is considered to be the anomalies, however for the last video, we'd need whatever was considered to be anomalous to be pointed out to us, otherwise we are left trying to explain many lights that are not doing anything, at least to my eye, unusual.

I was hoping for some lights to ZIP away, you know, to give them some sort of special feature. But no.

 

[JMartJr]

I was hoping for some lights to ZIP away, you know, to give them some sort of special feature. But no.

In this tradtion-filled time of the year, the tradition of nothing interesting ever happens in the videoed bit must be maintained.

 

[Shrinker]

Is there a forum for this video?


Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9oKEink9NYQ


This is the most interesting one from the last weeks

Just reading the comments under this, and it's made me wonder again how much of this flap is caused by people not understanding the low-light capabilities of modern phone cameras. A few years ago that scene would have been nothing but a dark noisy mess with maybe one of those points of light. A few years ago our phone camera generally couldn't pick up overhead planes, let alone stars. We're seeing photographs which people previously couldn't take without an SLR on a long exposure. It's no wonder people are not recognising what was always there. And it also makes me wonder how many eyewitness reports are actually of what they saw on their phone and not what they saw with their eyes. So many people seem to be using phone cameras as telescopes, not realising how much of their own artefacts these cameras add. When the northern lights showed earlier in the year I couldn't see them unless I looked on my phone screen, so in effect, I 'witnessed' something I could never have seen before.

 

[BlackHoleNFO]

In Stellarium Web : Position Chicago (Airport) at this Date, Venus and Sun constellation would fit.
On the right side of the Video Part 3 where its brighter, the Sun is below the Horizon, Venus good visible.
Sadly we dont see other stars.

 

[jarlrmai]

The 'venus' portion of the flight is closer to Detroit, but it doesn't massively change Venus's apparent location,

 

[Nicole Schnaß]

Could it also, that some craft only seeing in flightradar, some in flightaware, and other in https://globe.adsbexchange.com/

I am tracking down an stratosphere ballon: Tracking number: HBAL714. I can see it now with flightaware, but not on flightradar. Yesterday it was the most tracked object on flightradar.

https://www.flightaware.com/live/flight/map/HBAL714/history/20241217/0529Z/2SD7

What I have done wrong?

 

[Mendel]

What I have done wrong?

posted your balloon question in a thread on new jersey drones, instead of starting a new thread

 

[Nicole Schnaß]

posted your balloon question in a thread on new jersey drones, instead of starting a new thread

I am inside the threaths: drones over new Jersey, and I do not want built up a own thread for it. Could it a misinterpretation of you (Mendel)?