Mysterious Spiral by Todd Salat

Here’s a short 30-second time-lapse video made from a series of still photos I took looking north toward Delta Junction, Alaska, on April 15, 2023 just before 2 am. Prints of the vertical image at the end of the video titled “Mysterious Spiral” are available at . THE EXPERIENCE & EXPLANANTION ~ At first, I had no idea of what I was seeing, but this phenomenon appears to be caused by engine exhaust from a SpaceX Transporter-7 mission that launched southward on the Falcon 9 about three hours earlier from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. Within minutes of lift-off the Falcon 9 detached and returned safely to base, while the separated second stage engine sailed along on a polar orbit and deployed its payload of 51 satellites in the next couple of hours. When finished, the second stage Merlin engine jettisoned its excess fuel to begin deorbiting which caused the spiral motion. Water vapor in the fuel froze into crystals and spun outward into grandiose arcs and became illuminated by high-altitude sunlight causing the bluish-white glow. It’s kind of like noctilucent clouds, but shaped into a Van Gogh-esque Starry Night painting! This all happened as it passed over Alaska during a beautiful aurora display, stunning many night-watchers including myself. Trust me, at first, I was totally bewildered! I now know it can be explained with rocket science, but during and immediately after the experience, I thoroughly enjoyed the mysterious feeling of the unknown.