SIGHTING: HEBDEN BRIDGE, ENGLAND (UNITED KINGDOM)

Witness Testimony

"I took the dogs out for a toilet at about 1800. the location is on top of hills with minimal light pollution. as it was a very clear night sky and freezing i was looking at the sky. i was walking along our lane, which runs in a due north direction. there was the usual heavy air traffic which i was ignoring. i noticed what i immediately assumed to be a satellite traversing from the north heading east. my 1st idea was to think it may be the space station but it was smaller and less bright than when i have previously seen it. so i then immediately thought it was a normal satellite and watched it with declining interest. after about 1 or 2 minutes i began to think that the light was travelling in a variable manner, changing transversing speed. this initself i did not think was odd. i have often been out with the dogs and when star gazing if i focus on a single star it often begins to appear to move about a little. just an optical illusion. however, the speed did seemed to becoming slightly more variable. this was sufficient to refocus my attention to it. very shortly after this i began to think that the object had stopped. the cessation of movement was not immediately obvious but after watching a couple of minutes it was definite that the light had stopped moving and was static. ( i am absolutely familiar with an aircraft changing its heading to that the lights appear to be static and it was nothing like this.) i became intrigued by this and stopped watched it stay in exactly the same position for more than 10 minutes. there was enough time for the dogs to stop sniffing about and settle at my feet. but have walking difficulties and it was freezing so after about 10 minutes i continued with toileting the dogs. the light remained in place. when i went back out at 2200 hrs the stars were still there but the light gone. i really felt this was odd so i went on the stellarium website. this suggests the light i watched was coming from below polaris (this is the only star i actually know) and between cassiopeia and miphaak, heading toward almaak. stellarium indicates the track of the satellite sl-6 r/b(2) and luminosity are very similar to what i watched. it does appear to be almost spot on. the problem is satellites do not just stop and stay in the same position for 10 minites plus. i am not reporting an et type sighting. but that i watched a light that appeared in space, travel below the star polaris and then stop. watched this for at least 10 mins before i had to move. the stars all visible later but the light was gone. i wish i had watched it longer but it was freezing, the dogs got bored and i have mobility problems. "