Mysterious Light Briefly Illuminates Skies Across Appalachia and Beyond

Around 10:30 p.m., a viewer in Bridgeport, West Virginia contacted 12 News to report observing an unusual spiral-shaped light. Similar accounts emerged from communities spanning central Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Michigan. Witnesses described the light as transient and accompanied by what appeared to be cloud formations or wisps of smoke.

The display was attributable to the Vulcan Centaur rocket launched earlier that evening from Cape Canaveral, Florida. According to space news outlets, the launch occurred shortly before 9 p.m. EDT. The mission marks the United States military’s inaugural experimental navigation satellite deployment in nearly half a century, as detailed by Space.com.

West Virginia residents are not unaccustomed to witnessing rocket launches from Florida; last year, numerous reports and photographic evidence documented the passage of a Falcon 9 rocket following its launch on September 10th. The occurrence highlights the visibility of launches originating from Cape Canaveral across a wide geographic area.