OAKLAND PARK, Fla. – Local 10 News viewers sent in photos and video of the remnants of the SpaceX launch that were spotted Friday morning from Boca Raton to Oakland Park.
The photos showed a bright light in the sky with its tail lasting for about 15 minutes.
The unusual sight in the sky came after SpaceX launched a fresh batch of internet satellites from Cape Canaveral, barely five hours after bringing four astronauts home with a midnight splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico, capping the busiest month yet for Elon Musk’s taxi service.
The three U.S. astronauts and one German in the capsule were bobbing off the Florida coast, near Tampa, less than 24 hours after leaving the International Space Station. NASA expected to have them back in Houston later in the morning.
There were 53 mini flat-panel satellites in the predawn load Friday.
“Satellites are nice, but flying people are a little special and a little bit different, and the team here sure understands that,” SpaceX’s William Gerstenmaier, a vice president, told reporters. “There’s a sense of relief and and a sense of accomplishment that you know you’ve done something good.”
See photos and video from South Florida skygazers below:
(The video below was taken by Vicki Tofte over the Coral Ridge Country Club golf course in Fort Lauderdale.)