© Michael SimpsonUNEXPLAINED: The object spotted over the East Lancs in St Helens
He was cycling home at around 4.30am travelling on the Liverpool-bound carriageway when he was stopped in his tracks by the object, which he estimates to be flying at around 300ft.
The incident took place on Wednesday (January 21) near to the Waterside pub. Michael, who is the nightshift kitchen manager at Sainsbury's distribution depot in Haydock, initially dismissed the sighting as a hot air balloon.
He explains: "It was around the height that the police helicopter can normally be seen, so this was my first thought as to what it could be. There was, however, absolutely no sound emitting from the object.
"I had stopped travelling at this point and the object was moving very slowly and steadily towards me. It could not have been travelling any faster than 40-60 knots.
"Initially, I thought I could see a shaft of orange or red light shining down beneath the object, but as it crept ever closer it became apparent I was looking at flames. Please, let me be clear; I do not think I saw flames. I know I did."
Michael began filming the incredible sight with the video function on his mobile phone, only to discover he had forgotten to activate the 'night mode' switch.
He went on: "For complete want of a better comparison, the object was 'bowler-hat-shaped' with flames protruding from 'inside' at the centre, and I could clearly make out their reflections on the metallic underbelly of the craft. Also visible, were tiny, red lights on the sides and top of the craft.
"As soon as my eyes had convinced my head that what I was seeing was real, I reached for my mobile to capture this amazing sight on video. I activated the camera and began recording as the vehicle passed directly overhead and continued east, gradually increasing it's pace.
"To my complete horror and disbelief, I noticed that my camera was capturing nothing but pitch-black because it wasn't in 'night mode'. I stopped recording, turned on night mode and restarted recording but the craft was now too far away to make out any detail."
He did, however, manage to retrieve these stills from the footage which clearly show an unusual object.
Michael's incredible story is not the first UFO sighting in St Helens in recent times. Many sceptics dismiss UFO sighting as simply the European Space Station - something Michael says is not possible because of how low his unexplained object managed to fly.
"I have spoken to a lot of people about and the people that know me and know how rationally-minded I am are intrigued," he added. "The people that don't know me have been dismissive, but that is what you expect.
"Before I saw this I was open-minded about the chances of life on another planet but thought it unlikely they would be advanced enough to travel to Earth. I'm not so sure now.!"
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