LAKE ONTARIO, N.Y. (WIVB) —Several glowing lights were seen over Lake Ontario last night around sunset. Photos of these lights have definitely caused a stir on social media pages around Western New York over the last 24 hours and when you see them, it’s easy to understand why. Eight glowing orbs flashed across the sky numerous times, and onlookers say it didn’t look like anything they had seen before.

One on looker named Kate Caven told News 4, the people that saw them thought they were aliens. They saw strange floating spheres in the sky not too far from the shore. Caven at first thought it look like a plane, but when she didn’t see movement, her mind started to imagine different possibilities.

She said, “Some people were concerned maybe they were distress signals, but we couldn’t see any boats. And then some people mentioned maybe a meteor shower, but again they weren’t really moving. So that’s pretty much what most people were saying other than UFO’s or aliens.”

Caven says she was prepared for the worst even though she knew the lights were probably nothing serious.

She told News 4, “I joked around with my friend Matt who was with me, if they were coming to take us, I was ready, that that wasn’t a bad way to go out if I could see an alien.”

While she was one of the ones who found it comical, many were very concerned. The coast guard and FAA received countless calls from people, worried about the lights. News 4 later got confirmation from the Canadian government. In a statement, a spokesperson said, “The 424th squadron, out of 8 wing Trenton, Ontario, was conducting regular flare illumination training last evening in the Rochester, NY area.”

It’s a lot more exciting to imagine aliens and UFO’s visiting Western New York, still Caven says she’s still happy to be one of the few who witnessed the moment.

“That’s probably one of the most exciting things I’ve ever been able to photograph just because of all the stir with it.”

The Canadian government says this is not necessarily common, but that they do complete these exercises from time to time. So next time you see lights over the lake it may be the flares, or it may be aliens.