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A launch of a Falcon 9 rocket might be visible in the early morning sky on Wednesday. SpaceX plans to launch a rocket from Cape Canaveral at 3:38 AM. As of Tuesday evening, there was an 85% chance the launch would take place at that time.
The path would take a similar one to a launch that was seen by several Greene Countians on July 4. During that launch, several of our listeners told us they saw a bright object moving across the sky just before 5:00 AM. That light turned out to be the engines of the Falcon 9 rocket, with the large plume behind being exhaust gasses.
The images shared by our listeners were consistent with an upper stage separating from the lower stage of a rocket, which took place about 2:30 into the launch. The rocket would have been about 50 miles in altitude and travelling at nearly 5,000 miles per hour at that point.
The July launch was scheduled for 3:00 AM, but was delayed almost two hours. The window for Wednesday’s launch closes at 7:09 AM. The launch has also been delayed from previous dates due to other circumstances.
JULY LAUNCH PICTURES
Read our story about the July launch by clicking here.
Beth Landers, who lives in Sunnyside, said she saw the event at 5:03 AM and had time to get her camera out and take a picture. Landers said the moving at a medium speed and seemed to disappear over the horizon.
Suzanne Masoner was also able to get a picture from her house on Bright Hope Road. Masoner said she was outside right at 5:00 AM and noticed the bright was enjoying the sunrise and said it took about twenty seconds to disappear below the tree line. It was moving parallel to the ground The tail remained visible for another ten minutes.
Tim Hensley in Midway said he was able to follow the rocket for about fifteen seconds.
Amber and Wes Brobeck were walking down to enjoy a beach sunrise walk in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, when they were surprised to see this in the morning sky.
Jesse Strohbeen had one of the best views, from the window of an airplane as he was taking off from Miami.
Duane Gibson was vacationing in Dayton Beach and grabbed these images. From his vantage point, he may have also been able to see the first stage booster landing. The vapors from the launch also were visible in the sky for over an hour. SpaceX rockets detach their bottom stage and guide it back to Earth, landing it on a floating platform out at sea. The landing of the booster took place about 8 1/2 minutes after launch on the droneship A Shortfall of Gravitas. The booster landing would not have been visible from East Tennessee, but was visible at many locations in Florida.
These screengrabs of the launch video show the rocket right after ignition and at the stage separation before the second engine has ignited. The lights visible in the background are from the eastern seaboard of the United States.
SpaceX’s webpage shows the path of the launch which travelled up the east coast, making it visible across much of the eastern United States.
