{"id":18219,"date":"2018-12-20T01:02:07","date_gmt":"2018-12-19T17:02:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/spy-satellite-launch-gets-scrubbed-boo-meteor-explodes-in-california-skies-yay\/"},"modified":"2018-12-20T01:02:07","modified_gmt":"2018-12-19T17:02:07","slug":"spy-satellite-launch-gets-scrubbed-boo-meteor-explodes-in-california-skies-yay","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/spy-satellite-launch-gets-scrubbed-boo-meteor-explodes-in-california-skies-yay\/","title":{"rendered":"Spy satellite launch gets scrubbed? Boo! Meteor explodes in California skies? Yay!"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Streak
Keri Brooke, vice president of product marketing for Salesforce Analytics Cloud, snapped this picture of the bright streak. \u201cWhat the heck is this in the sky?\u201d she asked on Facebook. (Keri E. Brooke Photo via Facebook)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Rocket fans in California may have been disappointed by tonight\u2019s scrub of a Delta 4 Heavy launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base, but they received a nice consolation prize: a fireball that left what looked like a contrail hanging in sunset skies.<\/p>\n

The bright squiggle in the sky may have mystified some, but savvy folks who spotted the flash recognized it as the signature of an exploding meteor, also known as a bolide.<\/p>\n

It was pure coincidence that the fireball flashed at 5:34 p.m. PT, just before United Launch Alliance called off the launch of a classified spy satellite known as NROL-71 for the National Reconnaissance Office, due to elevated hydrogen levels that were detected during the countdown.<\/p>\n

Video views captured from cars traveling in locales including Sacramento, Stockton and the San Francisco Bay Area helped solve the celestial mystery. Here are a few of the best clips:<\/p>\n

https:\/\/twitter.com\/Richifornia\/status\/1075569646030381056<\/p>\n

https:\/\/twitter.com\/aririn\/status\/1075602875907076097<\/p>\n