Skip to the stories
Monday, 19 October 2026
Saved

Next edition

5:43

Headlines

Cosmology & Physics

SpaceX Falcon 9 launch creates glowing jellyfish effect over eastern United States

An early morning launch delivered supplies and scientific research to the International Space Station while sunlight illuminated the rocket exhaust plume across the sky.

FTMQ Space, written by our newsroom0 views

Share
Picture: ScienceDaily Space & Time

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched a Dragon spacecraft carrying supplies and scientific experiments to the International Space Station on October 13, 2026. ScienceDaily Space & Time reported that sunlight illuminated the expanding exhaust plume during the early morning flight, creating a glowing jellyfish pattern across the eastern United States. [1]

The uncrewed resupply mission carried equipment and scientific research aimed at advancing medical treatments. According to ScienceDaily Space & Time, the cargo included experiments that could support new treatments for conditions such as blindness, Alzheimer's disease, and Parkinson's disease. [1]

Commercial flights to the orbital laboratory support ongoing scientific studies and crew operations. Commercial Crew Program missions also bring personnel to the station, including the SpaceX Crew-12 mission that launched four crew members to the facility on February 13, 2026. [3]

Share

In short

  • A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched a Dragon spacecraft toward the International Space Station on October 13, 2026.
  • Sunlight illuminating the rocket exhaust created a glowing jellyfish effect visible across the eastern United States.
  • The mission delivered medical research experiments focused on treatments for blindness, Alzheimer's, and Parkinson's disease.

Sources

Every paragraph above points to the numbered items it rests on. Read the originals here.

  1. [1]NASA’s SpaceX launch lights up the sky with a giant glowing jellyfishScienceDaily Space & Time, 22h ago (the report this story comes from)
  2. [2]NASA’s SpaceX launch lights up the sky with a giant glowing jellyfishScience Daily, 22h ago

Background

  1. [3]SpaceX Crew-12 on Wikipedia

Our newsroom writes these reports with the help of software, from the 3 sources listed and nothing else, and checks them against those sources. Facts can still be wrong or move on; the originals are the record. Spotted a mistake? Write to daniel@monsterkong.com.

Related from FTMQ Space

Earlier reports of ours on the same people and subjects.

More in Cosmology & Physics

Get the day in one email

Reports like this one, the top news of the last 24 hours, every morning. Free, one email a day; readers can comment under every report.

By signing up you agree to our terms and privacy policy. Unsubscribe any time.

Comments

Loading

Join the conversation

Comments are open to readers of our daily email: the top news of the last 24 hours, every morning, free. Sign up and the comment box opens.

Already on the list? Enter the same address and we will send a sign-in link.

By signing up you agree to our terms and privacy policy. Unsubscribe any time.