SpaceX's evening Starlink launch wows West Coast skywatchers (photos)

News
By Josh Dinner
published

The iconic 'jellyfish' could be seen across state lines.

an expanding white plume extends from a small point of white light on the left, growing thicker in a stream across the darkening blue sky. Silhouettes of onlookers line the bottom, near a guard rail fence. City lights are seen low in the distance.
People stand at Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles as they view a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying a payload of 22 Starlink internet satellites into space, after launching from Vandenberg Space Force Base, on March 18, 2024. (Image credit: Mario Tama/Getty Images)

A SpaceX Starlink launch lit up skies across the U.S. West Coast on Monday evening (March 18), leaving a dazzling trail seen for hundreds of miles. 

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base on California's central coast Monday at 10:28 p.m. EDT (7:28 p.m. local time; 0228 GMT on March 19). The launch vehicle carried a batch of 22 Starlink satellites to add to SpaceX's ever-expanding wireless internet megaconstellation.

In what's come to be known as the "jellyfish" effect, the dusk launch provided ideal conditions for the setting sun to light up the rocket's expanding engine plume against the darkening sky, as the vehicle climbed high into Earth's atmosphere.

Related: SpaceX launches 22 Starlink satellites from California in dusky evening liftoff (video)

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket flies above Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles carrying a payload of 22 Starlink internet satellites into space after launching from Vandenberg Space Force Base on March 18, 2024. (Image credit: Mario Tama/Getty Images)

The launch site at Vandenberg Space Force Base is notorious for its overcast and extremely foggy conditions, so Monday's clear skies were a relatively rare treat for onlookers.

In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, SpaceX shared photos of the launch. 

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SpaceX's Falcon 9 streaks to orbit from Vandenberg Space Force Base on March 18, 2024, carrying 22 Starlink satellites into space. (Image credit: SpaceX)

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carries a payload of 22 Starlink internet satellites into space after launching from Vandenberg Space Force Base on March 18, 2024. (Image credit: Mario Tama/Getty Images)

Many X users responded to SpaceX's post, sharing their photos of the Falcon 9 jellyfish, which could be seen in neighboring states. "I can see it from my rooftop in Arizona," wrote Brandon D. Schilling (@BrandoSchil).

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Observers at Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles were also treated to the sky site, as the Falcon 9's trail stretched above the busy city low on the horizon.

People stand at Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles as they view a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying a payload of 22 Starlink internet satellites into space, after launching from Vandenberg Space Force Base, on March 18, 2024. (Image credit: Mario Tama/Getty Images)

Monday's launch was the 10th mission for this particular Falcon 9 first stage, which landed downrange on SpaceX's droneship "Of Course I Still Love You" in the Pacific Ocean shortly after liftoff. The rocket's second stage continued to orbit, successfully deploying the 22-satellite payload in low Earth orbit (LEO). 

SpaceX's Starlink megaconstellation currently consists of more than 5,500 satellites, and continues to grow. A recent test launch of the company's giant Starship vehicle included a payload bay door designed to deploy SpaceX's next-generation Starlink satellites, expected to add thousands more to the network once in operation. 

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Josh Dinner
Josh Dinner
Writer, Content Manager

Josh Dinner is Space.com's Content Manager. He is a writer and photographer with a passion for science and space exploration, and has been working the space beat since 2016. Josh has covered the evolution of NASA's commercial spaceflight partnerships, from early Dragon and Cygnus cargo missions to the ongoing development and launches of crewed missions from the Space Coast, as well as NASA science missions and more. He also enjoys building 1:144 scale models of rockets and human-flown spacecraft. Find some of Josh's launch photography on Instagram and his website, and follow him on Twitter, where he mostly posts in haiku.