Space jellyfish


A space jellyfish is a rocket launch-related phenomenon caused by sunlight reflecting off the high-altitude rocket plume gases emitted by a launching rocket during morning or evening twilight. The observer is in darkness, while the exhaust plumes at high altitudes are still in direct sunlight. This luminous apparition is reminiscent of a jellyfish. Sightings of the phenomenon have led to panic, fear of nuclear missile strike, and reports of unidentified flying objects.
A similar effect is the twilight phenomenon.

List of rocket launches causing space jellyfish

Rocket launchPayloadDateLocationSummaryNotesReferences----
Falcon 9Starlink Mission28 September 2025Vandenberg Space Force Base SLC-4EEvening launch creates a jellyfish.----
Falcon 9Starlink Group 10-2626 July 2025Florida SLC-40Early morning Starlink launch. Jellyfish caused by the rising Sun.----
Falcon 9Starlink Mission10 February 2025Vandenberg Space Force Base California SLC-4EEvening launch creates a jellyfish plume across California skies.Firefly Alpha flight FLTA005Eight CubeSatsVandenberg Space Force Base
Falcon 9 flight 361Starlink Group 9-1Vandenberg Space Force Base----
Falcon 9 flight 339Starlink Group 6-63FloridaNight-time Starlink launch. Jellyfish caused by moonlight.----
Falcon 9 flight 338Starlink Group 6-62FloridaNight-time Starlink launch. Jellyfish caused by moonlight.----
Falcon 9 flight 232Transporter 8Vandenberg Space Force BaseAfternoon launch – plume observed over Eastern Europe, approximately 75 minutes after launch----
Test flight of an unidentified Indian missile-India, Myanmar, BangladeshAn early evening test launch. Assumed to be of an Agni-V ICBM----
Falcon 9 flight 152Starlink Group 4–17FloridaAn early-morning launch causing UFO reports----
Falcon 9 flight 126Inspiration4FloridaThe first fully civilian crewed orbital spaceflight, launched from Cape Canaveral after sunset----
Soyuz-2.1.a launchProgress MS-17European RussiaA Soyuz-2.1a launched the Progress MS-17 to the International Space Station from Baikonur Site 31 on 29 June 2021. As the rocket reached the upper atmosphere the expanded rocket plume was illuminated by the Sun, creating a "jellyfish".----
Falcon 9 flight 114FloridaA crewed Cape Canaveral launch in the pre-dawn. The "jellyfish" lasted over 10 minutes after liftoff. In addition to the "jellyfish" created by the second stage, the returning first stage also made visible plumes.----
Falcon 9 flight 62CaliforniaA West Coast launch off California, in the post-dusk; causing UFO reports----
Falcon 9 flight 57FloridaAn East Coast launch off Florida, in the pre-dawn----
Soyuz-2.1.b launchGlonass-M satelliteEuropean RussiaA launch from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome heading over the cities of Nizhny Novgorod and Kazan, Russia----
Falcon 9 flight 46CaliforniaA West Coast launch off California, in the post-dusk----
Atlas V 551 AV-056 flightMUOS-4FloridaA Cape Canaveral launch in the pre-dawn----
Meteor-M2 weather satelliteEuropean RussiaA launch from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan----
RS-12M Topol-M nuclear missile test launchEurasiaLaunched from Kapustin Yar, Russia; to crash into Sary Shagan, Kazakhstan----
Kosmos 1188European RussiaA launch from Plesetsk Cosmodrome resulted in a giant U-shaped jellyfish appearing over Moscow and Kalinin, Russia----
Kosmos 955Northern EuropeA launch from Plesetsk Cosmodrome resulted in a jellyfish vapour trail seen over northern Europe, causing the UFO incident known as the "Petrozavodsk phenomenon"----