See video of SpaceX Falcon 9 as it soars over Long Island

The SpaceX Falcon 9 launch gave viewers on Long Island a rare treat on Tuesday — a look at a phenomenon called a "space jellyfish."

The effect occurs when sunlight reflects off high-altitude rocket plume gases, akin to how contrails form behind airplanes. In this case, those emissions take a shape resembling a jellyfish blob.

This happens only with early morning and evening twilight launches.

The SpaceX launch took place at 5:33 a.m. on Tuesday at Cape Canaveral, Florida, and its track went up the East Coast. The video shows it rocketing above Long Island.

By John Valenti

john.valenti@newsday.com

John Valenti, a Newsday reporter since 1981, has been honored nationally by the Associated Press, Society of the Silurians and National Headliner Awards for investigative, enterprise and breaking news reporting, as well as column writing. He is the author of “Swee'pea,” about New York playground basketball star Lloyd Daniels. His debut crime novel, “For Nothing Is Hidden,” rooted in 1950s Long Island, was released in October 2025.