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In Photos: Weird ‘Blue Spiral’ In The Sky That Just Went Viral
On March 24, 2025, the night sky in western Europe was treated to a rare and breathtaking sight – a blue spiral that left many people stunned and confused. As the images began flooding social media platforms, theories ranged from alien activity to some otherworldly phenomenon. However, it has been confirmed by officials that this extraordinary display was not of extraterrestrial origin.
Instead, the “SpaceX Spiral” as it is being referred to, was caused by a rocket launch conducted by SpaceX, a company owned by Elon Musk, just two hours prior to its appearance in the sky. The event took place from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida and marked the deployment of one or multiple surveillance satellites into Earth orbit for the US National Reconnaissance Office (NRO).
As can be seen in the photographs taken by BERTRAND ILHE/AFP via Getty Images, the shape bears a striking resemblance to that of a spiral galaxy. However, this phenomenon is not a celestial body but rather a frozen plume of fuel from the second stage of the Falcon 9 rocket reflecting the sun’s light from below the horizon.
The peculiar sight was caused by the rocket being in the upper atmosphere and spinning at the time, possibly due to the deployment of multiple satellites. This spin resulted in the characteristic spiral shape visible to those on the ground.
This incident is not unprecedented, as similar phenomena have been observed in the past following SpaceX rocket launches over the Barents Sea, New Zealand, east Africa, Hawaii, and Alaska, according to SpaceWeather.com.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamiecartereurope/2025/03/25/in-photos-weird-blue-spiral-in-the-sky-that-just-went-viral/
