{"id":78742,"date":"2025-10-14T22:51:10","date_gmt":"2025-10-14T22:51:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/78742\/"},"modified":"2025-10-14T22:51:10","modified_gmt":"2025-10-14T22:51:10","slug":"sunlive-satellite-at-dawn-mystifies-stargazers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/78742\/","title":{"rendered":"SunLive – Satellite at dawn mystifies stargazers"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Residents from across the North Island have taken to social media sharing their concern, amazement and wonder over a strange phenomenon in the pre-dawn sky.<\/p>\n


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Many theories were put forward, including aliens or a rare weather pattern, but Rocket Lab has claimed it, saying it was a successful launch of a satellite.<\/p>\n


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\"\"This photo of the “space jellyfish” was taken just around 5.30am in Mount Maunganui. Photo \/ Bijou Johnson<\/p>\n


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A spokesperson from the space agency said a radar satellite was launched from Mahia Peninsula for Japanese Earth-imaging company Synspective.<\/p>\n


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This is the seventh launch Rocket Lab has completed for Synspective, lifting off just after 5.30am.<\/p>\n


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From Whang\u0101rei, down to Auckland, Hawke\u2019s Bay and Tauranga, people shared photos of the cloud and its long, wispy tail that followed.<\/p>\n


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\"\"Wispy clouds were spotted in many parts of the North Island after the launch, including in Tauranga. Photo \/ Bijou Johnson<\/p>\n


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A spokesperson from Rocket Lab said the strange orb-shaped cloud that many saw is called a \u201cspace jellyfish\u201d, a phenomenon that can happen when sunlight reflects off the exhaust plume from the rocket\u2019s engines.<\/p>\n


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This is Rocket Lab\u2019s 15th launch this year and 73rd launch overall. \u201cOwl New World\u201d was just one of 21 upcoming missions to deploy Synspective\u2019s Earth-imaging constellation before the end of the decade.<\/p>\n


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\"WhatWhat many people likely saw was a space jellyfish – a phenomenon that can happen when sunlight reflects off the exhaust plume from the rocket\u2019s engines. Photo \/ Aaron Bennett<\/p>\n

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