Photo: SpaceX
A historic event for SpaceX in general and the West Coast in particular took place last Sunday, as a Falcon 9 rocket soared to the sky carrying an Argentinian satellite into orbit.
The launch and subsequent successful landing of the Falcon 9 marked the first time when such an event occurred in California. And even if they had prior warning, including from the Air Force, local residents were still mesmerized, intrigued and some downright scared by what they got to see in the sky.
The rocket took off from Space Launch Complex 4E (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Air Force Base, and as it ascended to orbit it became visible for people in San Francisco and Sacramento in California, Phoenix in Arizona and a few in Nevada.
Some believed that something exploded in the night sky and took to social media to have their fears watered down. Other, of course, we’re expecting aliens to disembark from their spaceship and take over the planet.
The sight of the Falcon in the sky was even more spectacular thanks to the halo of light that surrounded the rocket during ascent and booster separation. Seeing something peel off from the main ship and heading back to Earth might have been a scary sight for those with no idea what was going on.
Late on Monday, SpaceX published a few official photos of the Falcon doing its thing, and by now the news that this was a human enterprise and not a supernatural one has reached all those frightened by the spectacle.
A spectacle Californians will have to get used to, as the private space company will probably conduct more launches from Vandenberg, with three Falcons planned to launch in November. Separately, a United Launch Alliance Delta IV will take off in December.
Until that time, enjoy the pics released by SpaceX showing last weekend’s launch in California.
The rocket took off from Space Launch Complex 4E (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Air Force Base, and as it ascended to orbit it became visible for people in San Francisco and Sacramento in California, Phoenix in Arizona and a few in Nevada.
Some believed that something exploded in the night sky and took to social media to have their fears watered down. Other, of course, we’re expecting aliens to disembark from their spaceship and take over the planet.
The sight of the Falcon in the sky was even more spectacular thanks to the halo of light that surrounded the rocket during ascent and booster separation. Seeing something peel off from the main ship and heading back to Earth might have been a scary sight for those with no idea what was going on.
Late on Monday, SpaceX published a few official photos of the Falcon doing its thing, and by now the news that this was a human enterprise and not a supernatural one has reached all those frightened by the spectacle.
A spectacle Californians will have to get used to, as the private space company will probably conduct more launches from Vandenberg, with three Falcons planned to launch in November. Separately, a United Launch Alliance Delta IV will take off in December.
Until that time, enjoy the pics released by SpaceX showing last weekend’s launch in California.
Falcon 9's first West Coast land landing pic.twitter.com/zObJgzLI0C
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) 8 octombrie 2018
Video recap of last night’s launch and landing pic.twitter.com/QRcyZQp612
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) 8 octombrie 2018
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