A YouTube user under the name Natkis Ireland has uploaded a three-minute video recording of several Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs) in skies over County Cork. The video was taken in December last year but only uploaded in March.

The video shows what seem to be several bright orbs flying swiftly in some sort of pattern. These are joined by a few others moving from the right of the screen. Parts the footage of these orbs are obscured by a tree in the middle of the frame.

UFOs over County Cork in Ireland [Natkis Ireland/YouTube]
Natkis Ireland/YouTube

The observer wrote this note while posting on YouTube: "I am sorry for the quality, it was filmed by a mobile phone. Ironically, I had a Canon EOS 55D with 300mm lens at home that could have filmed in 3,000x3,000 but I was afraid they would disappear by the time I got my camera as this a very rare opportunity so instead, used a phone to record as much as possible."

It also appears the user initially used the video sharing Web site's auto-stabilisation feature but that was removed after viewers' requests.

True or False?

There are possibilities this video is a fake. The lack of audio, for one, has led to doubts over how genuine the footage is. American horror writer Whitley Strieber posted a note on the video, on his Web site, and said he had the video analysed by three experts. Two of the three people consulted declared the tape was a hoax, while the third made no decision either way.

The first expert pointed to a jump in the recording at the 1:32 mark and said: "not sure but I think it's fake". The second expert said he doubted the video because of the lack of general coverage, pointing out that if it were a genuine sighting, there should be more videos, photographs and people speaking of the incident.

The third acknowledged the video could be real and that he believed it to be real because the objects were "obscured by various foreground objects (which is certainly doable [with reference to editing them into the video] but pretty d**n laborious)".

However, he also cautioned viewers he still had doubts over the footage. He wrote: "... shooter seems to have had zero curiosity... once they went behind the bushes. One would think that, at least following the final orb he'd have attempted to catch a further glimpse."

He also raised the same question the second expert did - if this was a genuine sighting, why has no one else reported the incident?

Flares for Titanic Anniversary

Finally, one of the possible explanations given is that the orbs were flares released by the County Cork government to honour the men and women who died onboard the Titanic. However, those flares were actually released by the government in February, 2012, on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of that tragedy.

So is this video real? Check out the footage and decide for yourself...

[Courtesy: Natkis Ireland/YouTube]