A strange streak of light across the sky Saturday night erupted a flurry of speculation on a local Durango social media site, with theories of a meteor showers, military rocket testing and a possible Environmental Protection Agency conspiracy.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was no comet,\u201d Jola Schraub posted on Durango Says What? around 8 p.m. \u201cIt moved super slowly and it lit up the sky in a circular fashion. And long after it was gone (moved further west), the light stayed. What the heck was that???\u201d<\/p>\n
Another member said her 10-year-old daughter pointed out the light in the sky, thinking it was a comet.<\/p>\n
\u201cI told her I don\u2019t know what it is,\u201d Melissa Parker wrote.<\/p>\n
And one Durango resident was more suspicious of foul play now that a federal agency has upped its presence since the Aug. 5 Gold King Mine blowout.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs long as the EPA is working in the Durango area. \u2026,\u201d mused William Torbett.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s unclear what Durango residents were witnessing Saturday night, as there are several reasonings that could explain the mysterious sighting.<\/p>\n
One is the fact the Taurid meteor shower was at its peak. The annual fall event brings Earth through a comet\u2019s debris field, and as the dust hits the atmosphere, it produces cosmic fireballs, which can light up the entire sky before burning out. Many reported the flare changed colors from white to blue to red, typical of the phenomenon.<\/p>\n
\u201cMeteors can be different colors depending on what elements are in the debris that\u2019s coming down,\u201d said Charlie Hakes, an assistant professor of physics and engineering at Fort Lewis College, and director of the Fort Lewis Observatory.<\/p>\n
AccuWeather reported that 2015 is a \u201cnotable swarm year, when this shower really impresses,\u201d because it coincides with the new moon, which will limit the amount of light pollution.<\/p>\n
However, also on Saturday night, a Navy submarine launched a missile test fire off the coast of California, which dazzled and confused sky gazers as far as Nevada and Arizona, some news outlets reported. Witnesses said that beam started gold and small, and burst into a blue flame before it burned out.<\/p>\n
\u201cUsually if something\u2019s big enough to report, it\u2019s not just a meteor shower,\u201d said Dave Miller, owner of Durango Skies. \u201cIf people saw it in Arizona, there\u2019s a good a possibility you could see it in Durango.\u201d<\/p>\n
The lack of information on the rocket testing caused an uproar of speculation and panicked thousands, with calls going to law-enforcement agencies throughout the Southwest. Not long after the radiant beam lit up the night sky, a hashtag, #UFO, began trending all over social media, with people wondering if Saturday night was the night we learned we are not alone in this universe.<\/p>\n
Durango was not immune.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s obviously aliens and the government is covering it up as a missile launch,\u201d Durango resident Bailey Corry posted on Facebook.<\/p>\n
\u201cConspiracy!!!!!\u201d added Durangoan Brian Erickson.<\/p>\n
Hakes had a speculation of his own. Around 8 p.m., he was on the FLC rim and saw what he thought to be a helicopter with its spotlight filtered through a haze of fog or smoke, looking for something on the ground. \u201cIt was strange,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Hakes said he fields questions of unknown sightings in the West\u2019s celestial night sky often. The trouble is everyone\u2019s description is different, and that can make it hard to pin down what was actually seen.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut usually there\u2019s some explanation for most things,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Durango Fire Protection District and Durango Police Department said there were no helicopter-related emergencies Saturday night. The La Plata County Sheriff\u2019s Office also said it was unaware of any UFO reports.<\/p>\n