Retired HGV driver Terry Fox took the photo of what appears to be a lit-up car-sized object hovering above a train station in Castleford, West Yorkshire, on Monday.
The 66-year-old said the image, which he captured while attempting to photograph a rainbow, has sparked fears of an alien invasion in the town.
Father-of-three Mr Fox said: "When I first looked at it I thought it could look real - it definitely looks like it could be a UFO.