The exhaust plume from a SpaceX rocket could be seen all around Southern California Monday March 18, 2024.
A SpaceX rocket lit up SoCal's skies Friday night following a launch from the Santa Barbara County coast.
The launch came out of Vandenberg Space Force Base, with the rocket soaring south along the coast with a payload for the National Reconnaissance Office. The agency builds and operates the United States' fleet of spy satellites.
The first-stage rocket booster landed on a droneship at sea.
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The rocket and its exhaust plume are sometimes visible for hundreds of miles as it soars along the coast, if skies are clear and dark enough. Launches after sunset and before sunrise usually provide the best views as the rocket reflects the sun's rays against the backdrop of a darkened sky.
Hawthorne-based SpaceX launched 96 successful missions with its Falcon rockets in 2023, eclipsing its previous annual record of 61 orbital launches in 2022.
