Watch: Mystery light over U.S. East Coast sparks UFO speculation online
Witnesses reported seeing the ball of light, which appeared to have a spiral shape around it, in the Tuesday night sky over New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Connecticut, with some reports indicating it was seen as far west as Ohio.
Photos and videos of the light sparked speculation online, with some suggesting it could be a sign of extraterrestrial visitors.
Others pointed out, however, that the timing of the light coincided with the United Launch Alliance's Vulcan Centaur rocket, which took off shortly before 9 p.m. Tuesday in Cape Canaveral, Fla.
The rocket was carrying an an experimental navigation satellite into orbit for the U.S. military.
A second rocket was also launched around the same time in Africa.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
What was in the sky? Witnesses, experts speculate on strange sightings captured on camera
Missourians who had their eyes to the skies Tuesday night in hopes of catching the Perseid meteor shower, were surprised to see something much bigger than a shooting star. Witnesses all across the Show-Me State, and in Kansas and Illinois, took to social media to share what they captured, and to ask, 'What did I just see?' 'It looks like a portal trying to open up,' said Rex Howlett as he was recording from Waynesville, Missouri, Tuesday night. Despite most agreeing it was a man-made object traveling across our skies, there is ongoing debate over whether it was a satellite or rocket, and who it belongs to. Some speculated it was a satellite, a drone, a rocket, or something even stranger, like aliens or a UFO. Daniel Bush, a Missouri photography enthusiast, captured a timelapse of what he first called a 'fuel dump' as it traveled above Albany, Missouri. Bush tells Ozarks First on Wednesday there is ongoing debate among experts, so he can't be sure as to what happened or what it was. As speculation continues, some online are pointing to a Vulcan Rocket that was launched last night as part of it's first mission for the U.S. Space Force. The United Launch Alliance was touting the success of the launch from Cape Canaveral Tuesday night, describing it on Facebook as the 'First National Security Space Launch aboard Vulcan rocket delivers USSF-106 spacecraft directly to GEO.' However, the sightings were likely none of those theories, according to an astronomer interviewed by CBS News. In CBS News' coverage Wednesday, Derrick Pitts, chief astronomer at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, said the timing and trajectory of the Vulcan Rocket would not have lead to people in the Midwest witnessing its launch into space Tuesday night. Instead, he told CBS News that he believes the sightings were likely that of a different rocket launched by the European Space Agency around the same time. 'ArianeSpace, a company that works with the ESA, said it launched an Ariane 6 rocket from Kourou, French Guiana, around 9:37 p.m. local time,' CBS News reports. Pitts told CBS the rocket was carrying weather satellites into orbit, and it's flight path could have been close enough to the East Coast for people on the ground to see it clearly. While we wait for real confirmation, its a reminder that despite the thrill of theories conspiracies, sometimes the least exciting explanation is the correct one. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Solve the daily Crossword
UPI
19 hours ago
- UPI
Combat sports athletes from poor neighborhoods face greater brain risk
Researchers at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, said participants in combat sports who grew up in poor neighborhoods might be more likely to suffer brain changes associated with degenerative brain disease than their counterparts who grew up in more affluent areas. File Photo by Ian Halperin/UPI | License Photo It's a time-honored and somewhat romantic tale: The young fighter who rises from poverty to make a name for themselves. But reality might take some shine off such stories, a new study says. Participants in combat sports like boxing or mixed martial arts who grew up in poor neighborhoods might be more likely to suffer brain changes associated with degenerative brain disease, compared to fighters who come from affluent backgrounds, researchers report. Specifically, they had smaller brain volumes in regions important for movement and memory, including the thalamus, cerebellum and hippocampus, according to findings published Aug. 13 in Neurology Open Access. "It is well-known that high-impact sports such as professional fighting are at a greater risk of repetitive head injuries," lead researcher Brooke Conway Kleven, a postdoctoral scholar at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, said in a news release. "We found that socioeconomic status may influence how the brain responds to these repetitive impacts." For the study, researchers performed MRI brain scans on 100 professional combat sport athletes. All participants had a minimum of 10 professional fights and were currently active or recently retired from competition. During five years of follow-up, 20% of the fighters developed thinking and memory problems. Analysis revealed that athletes from impoverished neighborhoods had a thinner outer layer in certain brain areas, which can be a sign of early brain degeneration. They also had experienced greater shrinking in several key brain regions, including the thalamus and hippocampus, compared to fighters from well-off neighborhoods. This link remained even after accounting for factors like the fighters' race, ethnicity, income and overall number of fights. "Stressors related to income, employment, education and housing quality may compound the risks of repeated head trauma," Conway Kleven concluded. "Athletes from marginalized or under-resourced communities may face a heavier burden when it comes to brain health." However, researchers noted that because this was an observational study, it could not prove a direct cause-and-effect link between a fighter's economic background and their risk for brain disease, only an association. Further study is needed to validate the results and explore why upbringing might play a role in risk of brain damage, researchers said. "The findings support a broader understanding of brain health -- one that considers not just training or fight history, but also the social and economic context in which people live," Conway Kleven said. "Our study suggests that where someone grows up matters. Recognizing stressors can help inform more equitable approaches to protecting long-term brain health." More information The National Institutes of Health has more on traumatic brain injury. Copyright © 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
UPI
a day ago
- UPI
SpaceX launches Starlink satellites from Florida, California
SpaceX launched a new batch of Starlink satellites from California and Florida to continue the growth of its broadband internet service. Photo by Joe Marino/UPI | License Photo Aug. 14 (UPI) -- SpaceX launched new batches of Starlink satellites from California and Florida to continue the growth of its broadband Internet service. The California launch lifted off at 1:05 a.m. EDT from Space Launch Complex 4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base on Thursday, it carried 24 more Starlink Satellites. It took roughly an hour for the upper stage to deploy its satellites after it left Earth. The launch was SpaceX's 98th Falcon 9 mission in 2025 and now there are 8,100 active satellites out of the nearly 9,400 launched in 2018. Meanwhile, the Florida launch from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station took off at 8:29 a.m. EDT on Thursday with a batch of 28 V2 mini satellites, this was also the 69th orbital launch from Florida this year. The launch had a 90% chance of favorable weather.
