Source: Noticiero de lo Insólito
Chile: 100,000 Witnesses to a UFO Sighting? (1982)
Thousands witnessed a flashing UFO in the city of Arica in Northern Chile. The sighting began after midnight on the 11th of October and lasted a little over three hours. During this time period, the news spread throughout the city and people turned out to the street to watch the impressive object at ease. It has been estimated that nearly 100,000 people witnessed the strange heavenly display.
Questioned by newspaper reporters, witnesses agreed that the UFO was "an object that gave off intermittent, irregular flashes in different directions, and at various speeds." Some Chilean journalists were able to see the UFO for themselves through astronomical equipment, saying that "a large luminous core surrounded by an oval-shaped capsule, sky blue in color, could be clearly made out, very similar to a transparent membrane, and with three concentric black circles."
No official reaction has been made known to this moment, but the control tower at the Chacalluta International Airport reported: "It was a strange phenomenon with no explanation whatsoever." It was also made clear that no aircraft were flying in the skies over Arica, nor was there any awareness of a weather balloon having been launched."
There are reports that the phenomenon was also seen throughout the entire region of Azapa and Lluta in the Chilean altiplano and Pre-Cordilleran region.
[Translation (c) 2019, S. Corrales, IHU]