{"id":253462,"date":"2023-04-18T10:27:01","date_gmt":"2023-04-18T08:27:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=253462"},"modified":"2023-04-18T10:28:17","modified_gmt":"2023-04-18T08:28:17","slug":"a-spacex-spiral-over-alaska-spaceweather-com","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=253462","title":{"rendered":"A \u201aSpaceX Spiral\u2018 Over Alaska"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"253464\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?attachment_id=253464\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/00Todd-Salat-Mysterious-Spiral-by-Todd-Salat_1681570807_lg.jpg?fit=730%2C913&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"730,913\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"00Todd-Salat-Mysterious-Spiral-by-Todd-Salat_1681570807_lg\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/00Todd-Salat-Mysterious-Spiral-by-Todd-Salat_1681570807_lg.jpg?fit=723%2C904&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/00Todd-Salat-Mysterious-Spiral-by-Todd-Salat_1681570807_lg.jpg?resize=723%2C904&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-253464\" width=\"723\" height=\"904\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/00Todd-Salat-Mysterious-Spiral-by-Todd-Salat_1681570807_lg.jpg?w=730&amp;ssl=1 730w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/00Todd-Salat-Mysterious-Spiral-by-Todd-Salat_1681570807_lg.jpg?resize=240%2C300&amp;ssl=1 240w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 723px) 100vw, 723px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">From<a href=\"http:\/\/Spaceweather.com\"> Spaceweather.com<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">By <a href=\"https:\/\/spaceweatherarchive.com\/author\/drtonyphillips\/\">DR.TONY PHILLIPS<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>April 15, 2023:<\/strong>&nbsp;Longtime&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.aurorahunter.com\/\">aurora hunter<\/a>&nbsp;Todd Salat is no stranger to fantastic displays in the night skies of Alaska. But even he was not prepared for what happened after local midnight on Saturday, April 15th.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201eI was utterly surprised and mystified when I first spotted a distant bright light coming toward me from the northern horizon,\u201c says Salat. \u201eAt first I thought it was a jet airliner flying through some clouds. Then it took on the spiral shape and grew big fast!\u201c This is what he saw:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/spaceweathergallery2.com\/indiv_upload.php?upload_id=195104\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/spaceweather.com\/images2023\/15apr23\/spiral_strip.jpg?ssl=1\" alt=\"\" width=\"760\" height=\"950\"\/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201eI was shooting frantically with two camera\/tripod set-ups knowing that this was a unique event and within about seven minutes the \u201aapparition\u2018 swept by and disappeared.&nbsp; It was spellbinding!&nbsp; For the past two nights I had been photographing auroras over this dome (Donnelly Dome) and hoping to catch something special. I got my wish!\u201c<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Salat witnessed a \u201eSpaceX spiral.\u201c Three hours earlier (Saturday, April 15th at 0648 UT), SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket from California\u2019s Vandenberg Space Force Base. It carried 51 small satellites to Earth-orbit, a mission known as&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/spacenews.com\/spacex-launches-seventh-transporter-rideshare-mission\/\">Transporter-7<\/a>. When the rocket\u2019s discarded upper stage passed over Alaska, it vented its unused fuel. A bit of spin turned the harmless cloud into a spectacular spiral.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">An all-sky camera at the University of Alaska\u2019s Poker Flat Research Range also recorded the phenomenon:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed aligncenter is-type-video is-provider-vimeo wp-block-embed-vimeo\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"A SpaceX Spiral over Alaska\" src=\"https:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/video\/818040730?dnt=1&amp;app_id=122963\" width=\"450\" height=\"526\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"autoplay; fullscreen; picture-in-picture; clipboard-write\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The spiral appears about halfway through the video at the 09:50 UT mark. Even though you know it\u2019s coming, it\u2019s still a shock when it zooms through the field of view.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As strange and rare as it appears, the spiral is a routine by-product of SpaceX operations. Similar blue swirls have been seen after many Falcon 9 launches including&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.spaceweather.com\/archive.php?view=1&amp;day=20&amp;month=06&amp;year=2022\">this one over New Zealand<\/a>,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/sattrackcam.blogspot.com\/2018\/01\/fuel-dump-of-zumas-falcon-9-upper-stage.html\">another over east Africa<\/a>, and&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Ko8FhK_3tfM\">two more<\/a>&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Ko8FhK_3tfM\">above Hawaii<\/a>. One may be coming soon to a sky near you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>This story was brought to you by&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/spaceweather.com\/\">Spaceweather.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>April 15, 2023:\u00a0Longtime\u00a0aurora hunter\u00a0Todd Salat is no stranger to fantastic displays in the night skies of Alaska. But even he was not prepared for what happened after local midnight on Saturday, April 15th.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121246920,"featured_media":253464,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","_crdt_document":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[691818602,691818637,691818638],"class_list":{"0":"post-253462","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","6":"hentry","7":"category-uncategorized","8":"tag-alaska","9":"tag-aurora","10":"tag-space-x-operations","12":"fallback-thumbnail"},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/00Todd-Salat-Mysterious-Spiral-by-Todd-Salat_1681570807_lg.jpg?fit=730%2C913&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paxLW1-13W6","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":257623,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=257623","url_meta":{"origin":253462,"position":0},"title":"Mysterious \u201cAurora Blobs\u201d\u00a0Identified","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"16\/05\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Europeans are still trying to wrap their minds around what happened on April 23, 2023. Everyone knew that a CME was coming, so its impact was not a surprise. Photographers were already outside at sunset waiting for auroras. 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What may be the first of large scale migrationary movements, underwritten by the Government in its almost desperate struggle with rural destitution and drought destruction of farm lands, was announced to-night with the assignment of the army\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/0dust-bowl.jpg?fit=1200%2C842&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/0dust-bowl.jpg?fit=1200%2C842&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/0dust-bowl.jpg?fit=1200%2C842&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/0dust-bowl.jpg?fit=1200%2C842&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/0dust-bowl.jpg?fit=1200%2C842&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":440823,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=440823","url_meta":{"origin":253462,"position":2},"title":"Decarbonization Threat in Alaska: Pushback Opportunity (elections have consequences)","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"22\/04\/2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Much of the policy adopted in recent years has favored organizations that invest in alternative energy. For an electric utility that serves more than 90,000 rate payers, this strategy is shortsighted and heavily reliant on regulation to even the playing field with traditional energy sources.","rel":"","context":"In \"\"Bristol Energy disaster\"\"","block_context":{"text":"\"Bristol Energy disaster\"","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=bristol-energy-disaster"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/0-Decarbonization-Threat-in-Alaska-Pushback-Opportunity-elections-have-consequences.jpg?fit=784%2C1168&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/0-Decarbonization-Threat-in-Alaska-Pushback-Opportunity-elections-have-consequences.jpg?fit=784%2C1168&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/0-Decarbonization-Threat-in-Alaska-Pushback-Opportunity-elections-have-consequences.jpg?fit=784%2C1168&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/0-Decarbonization-Threat-in-Alaska-Pushback-Opportunity-elections-have-consequences.jpg?fit=784%2C1168&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":285226,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=285226","url_meta":{"origin":253462,"position":3},"title":"The Mystery of Orange Auroras\u00a0(Updated)","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"26\/10\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Auroras get their colors from atoms and molecules in Earth's atmosphere. During geomagnetic storms, energetic particles rain down from space, striking the air and causing it to glow. Red, green, purple and even pink are common signs of excited oxygen and nitrogen. The problem is,\u00a0there's nothing in the air capable\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/0Harlan-Thomas-Sibbald-Pond-Aurora-20231019-1_1697720489-1.jpg?fit=835%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/0Harlan-Thomas-Sibbald-Pond-Aurora-20231019-1_1697720489-1.jpg?fit=835%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/0Harlan-Thomas-Sibbald-Pond-Aurora-20231019-1_1697720489-1.jpg?fit=835%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/0Harlan-Thomas-Sibbald-Pond-Aurora-20231019-1_1697720489-1.jpg?fit=835%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":287428,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=287428","url_meta":{"origin":253462,"position":4},"title":"Earth\u2019s Ring Current System Just Sprang a\u00a0Leak","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"10\/11\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"From Spaceweather.com By DR.TONY PHILLIPS Nov. 6, 2023:\u00a0(Spaceweather.com) During this past weekend\u2019s strong\u00a0G3-class geomagnetic storm, low-latitude auroras spread as far south as Texas and Arizona. Upon further review, most of those lights were not auroras at all. 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Northern lights spilled out of the Arctic Circle all the way down to the US-Mexico border (+29.5N)","rel":"","context":"In \"CME\"","block_context":{"text":"CME","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=cme"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/00Brad-Dwight-Terlingua-Aurora-752693_1682365090.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/00Brad-Dwight-Terlingua-Aurora-752693_1682365090.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/00Brad-Dwight-Terlingua-Aurora-752693_1682365090.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/00Brad-Dwight-Terlingua-Aurora-752693_1682365090.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/00Brad-Dwight-Terlingua-Aurora-752693_1682365090.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253462","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/121246920"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=253462"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253462\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":253468,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253462\/revisions\/253468"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/253464"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=253462"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=253462"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=253462"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}