So, it wasn't a UFO as originally stated by the Murdoch press on the weekend. Who would have thought? It is however entertaining to read the comments from its intelligent online readership.
The first pass of the SpaceX Falcon9/Dragon satellite over the east coast of Australia before dawn today gave rise to widespread UFO sightings.
This YouTube video was made on a beach at the Gold Coast.
The rocket was leaking fuel and rotating, creating a halo effect similar in some respects to this spectacular ‘pinwheel’ over Norway last year from a failed Russian missile test.
SpaceX reported an anomaly just before the Dragon payload, attached to the second stage of the Falcon 9, reached its programmed shut down on attaining its target orbit.
The camera mounted above the second stage engine captured a rotation that didn’t affect the orbital insertion, but wasn’t in the launch plan either.
The Dragon may still be venting and rotating. There aren’t yet any orbital predictions on the usual sites, and they may be affected by velocity changes caused by residual gas escapes.
Keep watching the skies. (Crikey)
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