A mysterious, swirling light seen hovering in the night sky above New York City and Long Island was actually the aftermath of a rocket launch that took place nearly 3,000 miles away, as per reports and officials.
The European Space Agency conducted a launch of a weather-monitoring satellite using the Ariane 6 heavy-lift rocket from their spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, shortly after 6 p.m. local time on Tuesday, as mentioned on ESA’s website.
Many videos captured by amazed onlookers showed the ethereal S-shaped white light gleaming above the New York City skyline and the suburban areas of Long Island.
“The sight created a captivating, yet slightly unsettling, sky for a brief period,” mentioned News12 Long Island’s Lead Meteorologist Matt Hammer on X.
“What was that object gliding over the New York skyline tonight? Initially, I thought it was a SpaceX rocket, but it moved horizontally – this was observed from Hunter’s Point in Long Island City,” another individual shared along with a video of the enigmatic light.
According to WKTV, the launch of the over 196-foot Sentinel-1D satellite was in its second stage of burnout when it was visible over New York.
Reports also came in of sightings of the object in Philadelphia, Massachusetts, Virginia, and Cape Cod through social media posts.
“What happens is they travel in the upper atmosphere and release excess fuel. When this fuel reaches the upper atmosphere, it freezes, creating ice crystals up there. This results in the swirling effect that was observed,” explained StormTeam 5 meteorologist Mike Wankum to WCVB regarding the rocket launch.
