JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Early risers across the First Coast were treated to a unique sight on Thursday morning following a Falcon 9 space shuttle launch before sunrise.

The launch vehicle traveled northeast over the Atlantic Ocean, leaving behind a trail of ice crystals and exhaust particles as it ascended through the upper atmosphere. These particles drifted into the mesosphere, roughly 50 miles above Earth, far higher than typical weather systems, which reside in the troposphere.

As the sun began to rise, its rays illuminated the drifting particles from below, producing the ghostly glow to the east captured by photographers and weather watchers across Jacksonville and northeast Florida. Those images are found below.

October 16th Falcon 9 Launch Clouds

1 / 7 × Jeff Osborne Mo

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