Strange light formation in New Zealand sparks theories that aliens are among us

On Sunday night (June 19), a strange light formation was seen in the night sky over New Zealand. Stargazers observed spirals of blue lights visible from most of the South Island, sparking debate on social media as to what the strange formation was.

'An enormous spiral galaxy'

Alasdair Burns, a stargazing guide on Stewart Island/Rakiura, said:

It looked like an enormous spiral galaxy, just hanging there in the sky, and slowly just drifting across. Quite an eerie feeling.

Theories ranged from UFOs to foreign rockets to commercial light displays. However, Professor Richard Easther, a physicist at Auckland University, described the phenomenon as 'weird but easily explained,' as reported by The Guardian.

The explanation

Easther explained that when a rocket carries a satellite into orbit, and 'the propellant is ejected out the back, you have what’s essentially water and carbon dioxide – that briefly forms a cloud in space that’s illuminated by the sun.' He continued:

The geometry of the satellite’s orbit and also the way that we’re sitting relative to the sun – that combination of things was just right to produce these completely wacky looking clouds that were visible from the South Island.

The New Plymouth Astronomical Society explained the phenomenon in a Facebook post last night, saying:

The 'spiral' that was seen in the sky tonight around 7.30pm was most likely a 'fuel dump' or 'exhaust plume' from a SpaceX rocket launch.

Similar effects have been seen before and SpaceX's Globalstar 2 FM15 was likely to have passed New Zealand around that time.

Almost a year ago to the date, on 18 June, there was a similar spiral spotted around the Pacific region, as reported by the NZ Herald. That spiral was observed in places such as Fiji, Samoa, New Caledonia, and the small island of Tokelau. Similarly, it was later explained that the spiral was caused by a release of gas from a Chinese rocket.

Read more:

⋙ Astronomy: Beginner's guide to get started

⋙ NASA’s Mars rover has found ‘something unexpected’

⋙ A strange shape filmed on Mars by the Spirit Rover