SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches from California in spectacular glowing cloud
Updated
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket has taken off from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, sparking consternation online as social media users posted photos and videos of the spectacular launch.
While many assumed it was aliens, at 5:27pm (local time), the Iridium-4 satellite was launched as part of a series for the Iridium NEXT mobile communications fleet.
The space exploration technologies corporation tweeted confirmation the satellite had been successfully deployed to low-Earth orbit.
The mission, which was delayed from October and late November, will use a previously-flown first stage booster, making Iridium the first customer to launch twice upon the same rocket.
It was the 18th and final launch of 2017 for SpaceX, which has contracted to replace Iridium's system with 75 updated satellites. SpaceX has made four launches and expects to make several more to complete the job by mid-2018.
The satellites also carry payloads for global real-time aircraft tracking and a ship-tracking service.
Following the launch calls came in to TV stations as far afield as San Diego, more than 200 miles south of the launch site.
Cars stopped on freeways in Los Angeles so drivers and passengers could take pictures and video.
The Los Angeles Fire Department issued an advisory that the "mysterious light in the sky" was from the rocket launch.
SpaceX chief Elon Musk also joined in the fun, tweeting: "It was definitely aliens."
ABC/wires
Topics: science-and-technology, astronomy-space, spacecraft, united-states
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