Alaska's Enigmatic Spiral Phenomenon: A Spectacular Display of Light.

An ethereal spiral-shaped object appeared in the night sky above Alaska on April 15, which was captured on camera by the University of Alaska's Poker Flat Research Range. Astronomers have nicknamed these spirals "SpaceX spirals," which form when rocket fuel ejected from the fast-spinning upper stages of Falcon 9 rockets gets frozen in space and reflects sunlight back towards Earth. The spiral was made up of fuel ejected by a Falcon 9 rocket that launched from California's Vandenberg Space Force Base around three hours before the whirlpool appeared. These spirals have become more common in recent years as the number of SpaceX launches has increased.