Elon Musk has lost serious street cred on social media lately. There was some? reprieve earlier this week, however, when SpaceX got some positive mentions online. That¡¯s because their rocket launching from California created? some of the best alternative fireworks ever.
The launch took place at the Vandenberg Air Force Base, about 250 kilometres from Los Angeles. The rocket touched back down within eight minutes of the launch, having delivered the SAOCOM-1A Earth-observation radar satellite into orbit for Argentina. It may have been SpaceX¡¯s first launch from the west coast, but the reason people really sat up and took notice was thanks to the jaw-dropping spectacle the rocket caused in the sky above the city.
As you can see, it sort of looks like a cross between the Aurora Borealis and an alien attack in a science fiction movie. It was breathtaking to say the least, and was seen by? people hundreds of miles away. And it wasn¡¯t planned, it¡¯s just? how science works.
The exhaust vapours from the rocket, when rapidly dispelled from the craft, quickly condensed in the cold temperatures in the upper atmosphere to form crystals. The colours though were caused by the last stray rays from the setting sun passing through these crystals and the light splitting. It¡¯s similar to how a rainbow occurs, except that crystals have a higher refractive index than water.
Either way makes for quite an enthralling display.