h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

OK OK I'm being absurd. But it doesn't change the fact that something really weird happened to me yesterday.

It was around noon, and I was simultaneously working at my computer and listening to music on my headset, when I got this 'deet deet deet...' interference over the set, which is what usually happens right before I get a call on my cellphone or an SMS. As I picked up my phone, an incredibly bright light suddenly flashed through my window (like from a very bright light source or from a highly reflective surface, like mirrors), blinding me for a moment. I jumped out of my chair, and looked out of the window. There was nothing around that could've emitted or reflected light like that (I live on the 7th floor; there are no high-rise buildings facing my room); in fact, there was *nothing* out of the ordinary... which left me feeling really puzzled.

Any ideas what it could've been?

Hmm, that's prett weird all right. Was it a hot day? Perhaps a bunch of air molecules suddenly and for no reason released a bunch of heat energy as a flash of light. This is not impossible at the quantum level, but probably very unlikely.

Or perhaps a huge cloud of bioluminescent bacteria got blown past your window and had absorbed so much light energy that they couldn't hold it all, so had to release some.

On the other hand, a flying saucer is somewhat more realistic than these hypothesi...

It was a Frogstar scout robot class B.

@Count Zero: 'S what I thought! They've probably digitally copied all my Quantum Leap DVDs too. If they had a real *good* look at the state my room was in... mankind, don't expect another visit from aliens anytime soon.

I suppose the interference and the light *could* have been two independent events... but what are the chances that one would happen almost right after the other?

With your music on, could you have missed the engine noise (other than by that interference) of an aeroplane or car whizzing past and just happening to have a reflective surface arranged in the correct orientation to flash you?

We are not alone

Well, SEF, I guess it could've been an airplane, but cars are definitely out - I've tried working out the angles, and there's no way a car could've reflected light through my window from 7 floors down and to the east of my room (my window faces trees, trees and more trees; the light was from that direction). I do get my share of fighter planes roaring overhead though... maybe I should continue checking to see if they interfere with my audio equipment. Oh well, it was an amusing incident.

@2legs: I wonder if it was green...

It probably had 3.2 legs witch is the average I believe or maybe it was just a seagull, with a highly reflective pair of sunglasses on?

It doesn't have to be a single angle though. It could have been a multi-bounce path using the other buildings too. We also seem to have excluded lightning - well-known for causing interference and does occasionally occur out of the blue. You would probably have seen a helicopter with search-light still around. You might not have noticed a lurker behind the trees with large binoculars/reflector or flashlight though. I don't suppose you noticed or can recall whether the light was coming up or down at you (eg whether ceiling was illuminated by it).

Doesn't appear that anyone has mentioned this, so ...

Do the news crews or the police in your area use rotary wing aircraft (helicopters, choppers, et al)?

Many of them are equipped with search floods that, when flashed past a window, could render that effect. Likewise strobe flash photography, perhaps from a window of similar height, could be perceived that way (especially all of a sudden and unexpected like).

Even someone just trying out a handheld searchlight might point it upwards to see how far up a building it would be an effective means of illumination.

Or, it could be a laser communique from the moon, eh?