SpaceX Falcon 9’s Spiral amazes the internet, here’s how it forms

Earlier today, SpaceX launched a new Falcon 9 backed NROL-69 mission and the rocket has created an amazing spiral pattern that is gaining mass attention from the internet users and people around the world.

This classified mission lifted off at 1:48 p.m. EDT from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. After separating from the second stage, the booster performed a boostback burn and landed back at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. On the other hand, the second stage carried the payload to a classified orbit.

Once deployed, the second stage performed a deorbit burn to re-enter Earth’s atmosphere to avoid becoming space debris. This phase requires the stage to empty the remaining fuel, including liquid oxygen and RP-1, into the vacuum of space.

During this venting process, the rocket spins or tumbles along with the fuel, which could cause the creation of such spiral pattern. However, it gains visibility only when the fuel rapidly freezes into tiny ice crystals due to the extreme cold and low pressure.

Source – X

These crystals then catch sunlight even after sunset or before sunrise on the ground because the rocket is still in a sunlit region of the upper atmosphere.

This illumination creates a glowing, swirling pattern with a dark sky in the background. The spiral’s visibility is enhanced during twilight launches, when the contrast between the dark sky below and the sunlit plume above is the most pronounced.

After this occurrence, this Falcon 9 spiral was observed widely, including Europe and Russia. The shape and the color also intrigued viewers.

Such spiral patterns have higher chances of visibility during a SpaceX mission, but its visibility depends on deorbit time and light. So, we will continue to see these in the near future.

(source)