The Phoenix Lights — 13 March 1997

Two distinct events on the night of 13 March 1997 — a triangular formation of lights moving silently across Arizona, and a row of stationary lights observed near Phoenix later that night. The Council finds the second event explained by military flare exercises; the first remains separately documented.

The “Phoenix Lights” is, in practice, two separate phenomena that occurred on the same night and have been conflated in popular memory.

Event A — The triangular formation (early evening)

Between approximately 19:30 and 22:30 MST on 13 March 1997, observers across Arizona — and earlier in the evening across Nevada — reported a slow-moving formation of lights in a wedge or triangular pattern, moving from the northwest to the southeast at low altitude.

Photographic and video evidence is consistent with five distinct lights moving in formation. Some analysts have suggested high-altitude aircraft in formation; others maintain the silent, low-altitude track is incompatible with conventional aircraft.

Event B — The “row of lights” over Phoenix (later evening, ~22:00)

A separate set of observations from approximately 22:00, captured on multiple home video cameras, shows a horizontal row of lights appearing and disappearing in sequence over the South Mountain area of Phoenix.

This event has been convincingly attributed to the 104th Fighter Squadron of the Maryland Air National Guard, which has confirmed it conducted a high-altitude LUU-2B/B parachute flare exercise over the Barry M. Goldwater Range south of Phoenix that night. The flares’ positions, timing, and the observed behavior of disappearing as they fell behind a mountain ridge match the video evidence.

The Council’s verdict

Debunked — for Event B. The popular “row of lights over Phoenix” video record is consistent with documented military flare exercises and is best explained by them. Independent confirmation from the responsible unit closes this question.

Note: Event A — the triangular formation observed earlier in the evening — remains a separate question. It is filed under Case #00013 and carries a verdict of Inconclusive.

The Council’s archival policy assigns separate case numbers to phenomena that occurred at different times, in different locations, and admit different explanations, even when they have been culturally bundled. Conflation degrades the record.