Bright object approached from north & projected a large circular symbol on clouds. Symbol was like a 2 armed spiral galaxy. No sound.

A bright light approached from the north. I thought it was the moon behind the clouds at first. Then I realized it was moving towards us. The glow around it was huge, from our vantage point, about 5 times the size of the moon in the night sky.
We were sitting around the fire, my parents and I, and I said, "Look at that!" My parents turned around and were amazed. We watched it for the next few minutes as it veered away toward the SW. It followed the cloud line.
What was strange were 4 factors.
1. No sound came from it. I expect it was 1,000 feet in the air. I fly drones, so I can somewhat estimate altitude of aircraft.
2. The glow that surrounded it was enormous and unwavering, even though it itself was quite small in comparison. It had no flashing lights. Just steady and bright.
3. As it drew near and passed by, I noticed the glow created a shape or a symbol. My mom saw that, too. The shape was that of a spiral galaxy with 2 arms. Or a pregnant "S," I guess.
4. My dad said he watched the actual object closely while my mom and I watched the glow. He said it looked as though it was swimming back and forth a bit. We thought maybe this was an optical illusion because it was going in and out behind tree branches. It's winter, so the trees are bare. But I thought I should mention everyone's account.
It's possible it was a very bright light on an airplane, but the strange symbol it created the whole time it approached and departed seems to suggest either it was a very well funded prank, a military air test from the nearby base, or a UAP. In any case, I thought it was worth reporting.
I am 43, Male, and my parents are 66 and 70.