The mystery behind a swirling whirlpool that appeared over Earth’s skies may have been solved.
The flying spiral was pictured in the early hours of January 18 by the Mauna Kea Observatory in Hawaii.
It is now believe that the phenomenon was actually the launch of a new satellite by Elon Musk’s SpaceX.
That day the firm launched a Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral to deploy a GPS satellite into a medium-earth orbit for the US Space Force.
Experts believe the phenomenon was linked to frozen rocket fuel that was ejected during the launch.
The rocket’s first stage, which provides the main propulsion for lift off, separated from the payload-carrying second stage around 3 minutes after launch and eventually returned to the Earth.
After separating from the first stage, the second stage uses its engine to propel itself into position to deploy the satellite after which any remaining fuel is ejected before re-entry.
This causes the second stage to enter a spin before deorbiting and falling down to Earth in the Pacific ocean.
The result was the dazzling whirlpool of frozen fuel crystals in the shape of a spiral, which were illuminated by sunlight, according to Spaceweather.com
This is not the first time that SpaceX rockets have caused dazzling light shows.
In April 2022, the Subaru-Asahi Star Camera captured a similar spiral of light after SpaceX launched a satellite into orbit on another Falcon 9 rocket.
Falcon 9 launches are known for producing strange atmospheric effects, including bow shocks and rocket ‘jellyfishes’.
With SpaceX planning more than a 100 Falcon 9 launches this year, light shows like this one are likely to be spotted more often.
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