Depiction of the January 2017 Santa Rosa sighting featuring a massive rectangular craft with blinking underbelly lights and a pursuing high-speed aircraft
THINK ABOUTIT UFO SIGHTING REPORT
Date: January 28, 2017
Sighting Time: 6:45 pm
Day/Night: Night (6:45 PM in January)
Location: Santa Rosa, California
Urban or Rural: – Urban (Residential Santa Rosa)
No. of Entity(‘s): 0
Entity Type:
Entity Description:
Hynek Classification: NL (Nocturnal Light) Point or extended luminous source observed at night.
Duration: ~10 minutes (hovering time reported)
No. of Object(s): 1
Height & Speed: Reported as “slowly getting higher” before disappearing; speed described as “tremendous” for the pursuit aircraft.
Size of Object(s): Described as “massive” and “long enough to cover a significant portion of the sky”.
Distance to Object(s): Flew “directly over their car” (Low altitude).
Shape of Object(s): rectangular and long craft
Color/Description of Object(s): red and green blinking lights in the belly of the wingless, rectangular and long craft
Number of Witnesses: Multiple
Source: MUFON
Summary/Description: A couple has claimed that they saw police cars racing to the area of UFO sighting. The woman reported to Mutual UFO Network (MUFON) that they could not understand what took place as they drove home. The anonymous reporting witness said that she was with her boyfriend in the car when she noticed a bright light in the sky. She thought it was a planet, but her boyfriend did not believe so as the UFO started getting closer and closer.
Before they knew it, the mysterious aerial thing was flying directly over their car. The UFO came so close to them that they could see details underneath the craft. They saw red and green blinking lights in the belly of the wingless, rectangular and long craft.
The duo could not comprehend what they witnessed while driving about a mile to their home. When they arrive in their home, they saw some police cars towards the direction of the suspected UFO sighting. They could still see the UFO from their house. They noticed the UFO went back higher in the sky, hovered in the same spot for around ten minutes, and went back in the direction it first appeared.
The couple captured a video of the UFO while it hovered high up in the sky. It was reportedly getting higher in the sky slowly and further away until it disappeared to the couple’s sight. Interestingly, soon after the disappearance of the strange object in the sky, the couple saw a plane at a tremendous speed that appeared to follow the UFO. They heard a loud sound from the aircraft as if it was going incredibly fast.
The unusual incident reportedly took place in Santa Rosa, California at 6:45 pm on January 28, 2017. MUFON is investigating the case.
Technical Analysis: Comparison to Conventional Aviation
One of the most striking aspects of the Santa Rosa sighting is the juxtaposition between the unidentified craft and the conventional plane that appeared shortly after. Witnesses noted that while the plane emitted a “loud sound” indicative of high-speed propulsion, the rectangular object was reportedly silent while hovering at low altitude. This lack of audible propulsion, combined with the absence of traditional wings or a fuselage, strongly differentiates the object from local drone activity or commercial aircraft frequently seen over California. Furthermore, the witness’s observation of “red and green blinking lights” on the underbelly initially suggested a terrestrial craft, yet the rapid ascent and subsequent “chase” by a high-speed aircraft suggest a level of military interest or aerial pursuit that has yet to be officially explained by MUFON investigators.
In-Depth Witness Testimony: Proximity and Emotion
The Santa Rosa encounter is characterized by the extreme proximity of the craft to the witnesses’ vehicle. According to the primary report filed with MUFON, the witness described a feeling of profound confusion as the object transitioned from a “distant bright light” to an overhead presence in a matter of seconds. The “wingless” nature of the craft was a point of significant emphasis; unlike any known commercial or military fuselage, this object maintained a perfectly rectangular and long shape without visible control surfaces like tail fins or rotors.
Furthermore, the behavioral patterns of the object—hovering stationary for ten minutes before slowly ascending—suggest a level of sophisticated buoyancy control that contradicts traditional aerodynamic lift. The witnesses noted that the red and green blinking lights were not just navigation markers but seemed integrated into the “belly” of the structure itself. The psychological impact on the couple was immediate; they reported a sense of urgency to reach their home, only to be met with the sight of police cars racing toward the very area they had just fled. This potential law enforcement response adds a layer of official, albeit unconfirmed, corroboration to the evening’s events in Santa Rosa.
California’s 2017 Aerial Anomalies
The Santa Rosa sighting was part of a broader cluster of reports across Northern California in early 2017. Similar “rectangular” or “cigar-shaped” objects were reported in nearby Sonoma County during the same window, suggesting a possible corridor of activity. While the Santa Rosa case is unique due to the reported police car response and the military-grade aircraft pursuit, it fits into a historical pattern of California Sightings that often occur near coastal urban centers. The proximity to Travis Air Force Base often leads to “training exercise” dismissals, yet the silent hovering behavior of the rectangular craft remains technologically inconsistent with the heavy transport and tanker aircraft stationed in the region.
The Santa Rosa sighting is particularly significant due to the immediate arrival of a second, high-speed aircraft that appeared to “chase” the unidentified object. This rapid response suggests that the rectangular craft was not only visible to civilian witnesses on the ground but was likely tracked via radar by local military or air traffic control authorities. While official explanations often lean toward civilian drones or atmospheric anomalies, the sheer scale of the rectangular craft—described as being long enough to cover a significant portion of the sky—and its silent, hovering capability defy current drone technology standards. The subsequent high-speed pursuit by what witnesses described as a plane with a “tremendous” engine roar further underscores the potential for a localized national security event. Until further declassification or a more detailed MUFON forensic analysis of the witness video is released, the 2017 Santa Rosa event remains one of California’s most compelling modern aerial mysteries.
