The Phoenix Lights: A V-Formation Over Arizona in 1997
Direct answer: On the night of March 13, 1997, thousands of people across Arizona reported lights in the sky. There were actually two separate events: an early-evening V-shaped formation of lights that drifted south across the state, and a later group of stationary lights over Phoenix. The 10 pm lights were attributed to military flares from a training exercise. The earlier V-formation is still debated and has no single accepted explanation.
The Phoenix Lights are remembered as one event, but the evidence points to two. Keeping them separate is the key to understanding what was solved and what was not.
Event one: the moving V
In the early evening, witnesses from southern Nevada down through Phoenix and toward Tucson described a large V or boomerang shape of lights moving slowly and silently across the sky. Many reported it blocking out stars as it passed, suggesting a single solid object rather than separate points of light. The sightings spanned roughly an hour as the formation tracked south, which is why so many people in different cities saw it.
Event two: the lights over Phoenix
Around 10 pm, a separate row of bright lights appeared to hang over the Phoenix area, then faded one by one. This is the footage most people have seen on the news. These lights were later attributed to flares dropped by Air National Guard A-10 aircraft during a training exercise at a range southwest of the city. The flares, drifting on parachutes behind a ridge line, match the way the lights hung and then winked out.
The governor's reversal
The case has an unusual political footnote. Then-Governor Fife Symington held a 1997 press conference that played the event for laughs, bringing out an aide in an alien costume. Ten years later, in 2007, Symington said he had personally watched a large craft move overhead that night and that it was unlike anything he could identify. His later statement did not resolve the case, but it kept the V-formation in serious discussion.
What is solved and what is not
The flare explanation handles the late, stationary lights well. The earlier moving formation is harder. Skeptics propose a high-altitude line of aircraft seen from far away, which can look like a single shape at night. Witnesses counter that the object was low, silent, and clearly solid. With no radar record or clear photography of the early event, both readings survive.
What is not in dispute is the scale. The Phoenix Lights drew reports from across an entire state, which is what makes it one of the most witnessed sightings in American history.
Frequently asked questions
What were the Phoenix Lights?
Two separate events on March 13, 1997: an early-evening V-formation that moved south across Arizona, and a later set of stationary lights over Phoenix.
Were the Phoenix Lights flares?
The later 10 pm lights match flares from an Air National Guard training exercise. The earlier moving V-formation is not as cleanly explained.
Did the governor of Arizona see them?
Governor Fife Symington mocked the event in 1997, then in 2007 said he had personally seen a large craft overhead that he could not explain.
How many people saw the Phoenix Lights?
Thousands, across a wide area from southern Nevada through Phoenix toward Tucson, making it one of the most witnessed sightings in US history.
Have the Phoenix Lights been explained?
Partly. The 10 pm lights match flares. The earlier V-formation has competing explanations but no single accepted answer.
See it on the globe
The Phoenix Lights are plotted with thousands of reports on our interactive 3D map. Spin the globe, find Arizona, and explore what was seen near you.
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