The truth is out there – on page 1,520 of the Argos catalogue to be exact.

The mystery of the cylindrical UFO spotted hovering in the skies above the Black Country was today solved, revealed as a £6.49 children’s balloon.

The picture in Monday’s Express & Star created a huge amount of debate among UFO watchers and the story on our website attracted more than 10,000 hits worldwide. The suspected UFO, spotted in Walsall by reader Mike Tunnicliffe, looked like a giant sausage and had people looking skywards.

But the answer to the mystery is close to home – any Argos store in fact, where the National Geographic solar balloon is currently being offered.

The solar airship is a scientific experiment that shows how the difference in molecules inside and outside the balloon causes it to inflate to up to eight metres high. It comes in a small box, complete with tether lines and handles.

Scores of readers called in to say the UFO resembled the solar airship they had seen while leafing through the “gift ideas section”.

Deta Ward, a student from Friar Park, aged 16, said: “I noticed it in the catalogue and it looked very similar. It’s quite understandable people might think it was a UFO because they do fly quite fast.”

Experts have also confirmed the object was most likely to be a solar airship.

Nick Pope, who used to investigate UFO sightings for the Ministry of Defence, said: “I’m virtually certain this is a solar airship and I’ve come across other UFO sightings that have been explained in this way.

“If you’ve never seen one before they can look truly mysterious.”

Retired teacher Mr Tunnicliffe, aged 63, who snapped the strange object from the garden of his Sutton Road home, said: “I’m pleased the mystery has been solved.

“It was a puzzle because it suddenly appeared, stayed for a few minutes and then went again.”