BY KARA O'NEILL
Marie Mela, who captured the weird weather phenomenon on camera, is now appealing for other witnesses who might have seen the event.
An Austrian student's video of a UFO-like object captured while lighting New Year's fireworks has gone viral after it was posted online.
Marie Mela from Vienna was enjoying the New Year with friends in the Mostviertel region of Lower Austria, famous for the large number of pear orchards from where schnapps and cider are made.
But she insists that the video on her Facebook post is genuine, and has appealed in her message for anybody else who saw the phenomena to get in touch.
The video shows a group of young people outside with the clinking of champagne glasses, and the sound of the Danube waltz traditionally clearly heard playing as it is a New Year tradition in Austria as people wish each other all the best for 2016.
Alongside somebody lets off a firework, which heads into the sky and as it explodes, a silver white object can be seen framed by clouds and lightning forking in the area.
One girl is seen looking wide-eyed around her, while a man can be heard saying: "Did anybody see that?"
She wrote: "WTF, not sure if this is a UFO over Lower Austria or some bizarre weather phenomenon. Anyone any idea what it is? Did anybody else see this on the New Year?"