Mysterious light in sky likely from rocket launch
Courtesy of Jonn Mansfield
Courtesy of Jonn MansfieldSeveral residents in the Pittsburgh area reported seeing a strange object in the sky Tuesday night, during the peak of the Perseid meteor shower.
While many Southwestern Pennsylvania residents were looking skyward Tuesday night to catch a glimpse of the Perseid meteor shower, a mysterious light captured their attention, prompting the question: What did I just see?
The bright, glowing light seen gliding across the sky around 10:30 p.m. wasn’t a comet, a weather satellite, or a UFO.
The light people spotted likely was from the Vulcan rocket launched by the United Launch Alliance.
It took off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, at around 9 p.m.
According to Space.com, the rocket was carrying an experimental navigation satellite for the U.S. military.
The glowing spectacle was visible for hundreds of miles.
Adam Kienzle, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Pittsburgh, said there were reports of the object being spotted as far northeast as Burlington, Vt., and as far west as Omaha, Neb.
The object wasn’t the rocket itself, but likely excess fuel that was released as the rocket ascended.
However, there was no official confirmation about what it was.
ULA wasn’t the only rocket launch that took place last night. Europe’s Ariane 6 rocket launched from the European Spaceport in French Guiana, putting a weather satellite into orbit.
Each summer, the Perseids light up the sky as meteoroids burn in Earth’s atmosphere, creating “shooting stars.”
The event can produce up to 100 meteors per hour at its peak. This year’s peak was Aug. 12.