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It started like something out of a sci-fi thriller: a glowing, pill-shaped object hovering over the skies of upstate New York.
Photos captured near the Finger Lakes on Aug. 12 showed a slow-moving orb shrouded in a glowing mist, sparking a surge of UFO speculation in a community’s Facebook group.
Some residents described it as “otherworldly,” as others commented, asking what it was.
“They’re here,” one person joked.
“Truly an amazing thing to witness!” another said.
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Tanicia Miller shared photos of the mysterious event with Fox News Digital. (Tanicia Miller/Facebook)
But what many believed could be an alien visitation turned out to be something less supernatural: a rocket launch.
According to Space.com, the mysterious orb was later confirmed to be the planned launch of the Vulcan Centaur by the United Launch Alliance from Cape Canvaveral, Florida.
The Pentagon did not respond to a request for comment.
Photos from Tanicia Miller captured the mysterious orb in the night sky. (Tanicia Miller/Facebook)
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“My first instinct from my scientific and military training is to look for a conventional explanation, such as a meteorological or human-made aerospace explanation, because that’s what many objects in the sky are,” Rear Admiral (ret.) Tim Gallaudet, Ph.D., U.S. Navy, told Fox News Digital. “In this case, it was both.”
Tanicia Miller captured the pill-shaped object, later identified as a rocket launch, on Aug. 12, 2025. (Tanicia Miller/Facebook)
He emphasized the critical nature of data verification when distinguishing between civilian misidentifications and genuinely Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP).
“The primary protocols are to cross-check the visual sighting with other data: higher-resolution optical or infrared, radar, lidar, listen for a radio or acoustic signature, and if it looks to be under intelligent control, interrogate it via VHF radio. That will allow for a better characterization of the object, e.g. size, speed, altitude, range, material composition, and intentions.”
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As UAP sightings continue to rise, Gallaudet said that more scientific transparency and investigation could help reduce both stigma and fear.
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“We tend to fear the unknown, and so more UAP research can not only reduce the stigma associated with the phenomena, but also transform their enigma status to accepted science,” he said.