SpaceX Falcon 9 Launch from California Visible in Croatia
SpaceX successfully launched its Falcon 9 rocket on January 11 from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, aiming to place a payload into a sun-synchronous orbit. The rocket's upper stage became visible in Croatia around 6 PM CET, creating a bright spiral phenomenon as sunlight illuminated the spent fuel at high altitude. This visual spectacle highlighted the far-reaching impact of the mission, despite its launch location.

SpaceX launched its Falcon 9 rocket on January 11 at 5:44 AM PT from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. The mission, named Twilight, aimed to place a payload into a dusk-dawn sun-synchronous orbit, allowing satellites to pass over the same parts of Earth at consistent local solar times.
This type of orbit is suitable for observational, climate, military reconnaissance, and communication satellites. The Falcon 9 flew south over the Pacific Ocean, typical for such polar missions. Around 6 PM CET, the rocket's upper stage and exhaust were visible in Croatia as a bright phenomenon resembling a light spiral, due to sunlight illuminating the spent fuel at high altitude while the ground remained dark. Thus, despite the launch location, this SpaceX mission visually impacted parts of Europe, including Croatia.




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