On at least three occasions I have witnessed a visual anomaly, most commonly after being awake for more than twenty four hours. It is somewhat short-lived, but very clear, very definitive, and seemingly too complex to have constructed in my mind. I hope to relate my observations to find this is a normal occurrence, or to find out what could cause it.
I have observed it outside on a bright and cloudy day, with glasses on, as well as under a single incandescent bulb, with concave-lensed glasses off, so it does not seem environmental. On none of the occasions did I actively feel exhausted.
The illusion is vaguely like snow. Many different iridescent points fall slightly and drift very randomly. These points resemble transparent sparks of an indefinite hue, like the shine of a soap bubble. Their linear speed does not exceed two feet per second, as they swoop gently but unpredictably.
Their movement appears wholly three-dimensional, but in the moving cloud it can be difficult to tell if parallax holds true. I get the sensation that these particles are only visible within about 4 feet. Looking around feels like normal head rotation - - they have definite positions and do not follow the motion of the eyes or retinas.
Outdoors, with dirty glasses, they were slightly less clear to the eye. Indoors, in a more confined space without concave lenses, they may have been somewhat clearer and more precisely defined. In that most recent observation, I was going to attempt to see if the particles reacted to fluid motion of the air (caused by my breath), but the sighting ceased too quickly to sample… it was only ten or fifteen seconds long. The first sighting, however, had lasted at least one minute.
