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What was the strange light many observed over the Highlands last night?


By David G Scott

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Several images were posted to social media last night of a triangular shaped light moving across the sky.

The object was seen by people across the country with many confirming they too had spotted it, some sharing pictures of varying quality to illustrate.

Amid some excitable chat about UFOs, it seems there is a rational explanation for the strange sight that was visible over the region last night at around 10pm.

The strange light seen in the sky by Tracey Macleod from Thurso was actually a satellite being launched thousands of miles away. Picture: Tracey Macleod.
The strange light seen in the sky by Tracey Macleod from Thurso was actually a satellite being launched thousands of miles away. Picture: Tracey Macleod.

Tracey Macleod from Thurso saw the unusual light and posted a photo she took to the Facebook page for Caithness Astronomy Group (CAG).

"I saw it from Royal Terrace, Thurso, at about 22.15 and it was only there for about five minutes," said Tracey.

Picture posted by Caithness Astronomy Group last night with the same unusual light seen over Dunnet area.
Picture posted by Caithness Astronomy Group last night with the same unusual light seen over Dunnet area.

An administrator for CAG said: "I believe this was a re-entry burn from the rocket section as it re-entered Earth's atmosphere, after deploying the Landsat 9 satellite."

Landsat 9, a NASA satellite built to monitor the Earth’s land surface, successfully launched at around 8pm (BST) last night from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. About two hours later it performed a reversing manoeuvre, releasing two glowing clouds of vapour. The spectacle was visible over much of the UK that had clear skies.

An unnamed local thought it might have been a solar storm and said it was "unlike other Northern lights I've seen up here".

"The display was really just a white light fan, cone-shaped and the width of 10 'House of the Northern Gates' as seen from Dunnet Bay," he added.


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