Throughout the night of July 9th, different visual manifestations were observed in the sky over several East European countries, including bright clouds, elliptical shapes and a remarkable blue glow. These events were initially interpreted by many as UFO sightings.
The visual effects were due to the upper stage of the Ariane 6 rocket, which, after launch from French Guiana, went through anomalies during the de-orbit phase. The rocket released gases that formed clouds and bright streaks in the sky. In addition, there was a visible blue glow, which turned out to be part of the mission itself.
The Ariane 6 flight was designed to place several satellites into orbit, including the fourth Slovak satellite, GRBBeta. Despite some technical problems, such as the failure of the auxiliary power unit (APU), the launch was generally considered a success. However, the upper stage of the rocket deviated from its planned orbit and became a visible object in the sky for longer than expected.
The phenomenon caught the public's attention and sparked speculation about its origin, from UFO sightings to discussions about the nature of the observed anomalies. In Russia, the blue object shone in the night sky, generating great interest and debate among residents and the scientific community.
Here follows a selection of reports, photos and comments.
UFO over Poland. We explain
Piotr Cieśliński
On Tuesday, a few minutes after 23 o'clock, a bright object could be seen flying over the northern horizon, surrounded by pulsating semicircular clouds. Experts immediately identified the UFO. However, it was the upper stage of the Ariane 6 rocket, which made its maiden flight into space on Tuesday afternoon. It started at 21 (local time) from the spaceport in French Guiana, and then at 23, as planned, its upper stage was to make the second lap of the Earth and fly slightly north of Poland.
However, the rather high orbit (580 km above the Earth) and the small size of the Ariane 6 upper stage did not promise a big show.
Meanwhile, it was simply heavenly.
Where did the bright streaks and pulsating clouds that surrounded a small rocket fragment and amazed thousands of random observers across Poland come from?
The explanation is no less interesting than the show itself.
The spectacular sighting was related to an anomaly in the auxiliary power unit (APU) that occurred during this phase of the flight. Is the strange phenomenon occurring over Poland due to a failure of the Ariane 6 auxiliary thruster?
APU is a new and pioneering system whose objective is to allow the upper stage of the rocket to ignite its engine several times in a state of weightlessness.
Initially, when the liquid oxygen and hydrogen tanks are full, there is sufficient pressure for the fuel and oxidizer to flow into the combustion chamber. However, when the upper stage of the rocket reaches orbital velocity and loses weight, the tanks are already partially empty. The pressure in the drive system drops and it may become difficult to start the engine.
Normally helium, an inert gas that is transported into space in pressurized tanks, is used to maintain pressure, but Ariane 6 designers calculated that for optimal upper stage operation, the rocket would have to carry tanks that were too large and too heavy.
That is why the APU was invented.
The main function of this innovative device is to maintain a constant pressure in the tanks and drive system.
The APU does this by extracting a small amount of liquid oxygen and hydrogen from the tanks, which it then slows down by increasing the pressure and then injects them back into the tanks.
This is not the only function of the APU. Before the engine starts up again in a weightless state, it produces a small thrust force that acts like artificial gravity: it deposits the fuel at the bottom of the tank, where the fuel inlets are located. It prevents fuel lines and fuel pumping turbopumps from clogging with gas bubbles.
Finally, the APU can serve as a correction motor, providing additional thrust as needed and properly orienting the upper stage before starting the main motor.
What happened during the maiden flight of Ariane 6?
On the first flight of Ariane 6, the auxiliary power unit (APU) operated unharmed during the first phase of the flight, which lasted more than an hour. It was switched on and off twice.
Ariane 6 debut flight schedule:
ESA
The APU was scheduled to ignite a third time almost two hours after liftoff, just before the upper stage appeared in our sky. Its task in this phase of the flight was to correct the orbit and prepare for the final main engine thrust that would end the mission and return the upper stage to the atmosphere.
The European Space Agency admitted yesterday that the attempt to launch the APU for the third time failed. The system shut itself down after a few seconds.
The experts did not disclose anything else, but one can suspect that what we saw in the Polish sky were persistent attempts to start the correction engines, which were constantly shutting down.
This caused Ariane 6 to constantly release concentric clouds of gas from its thruster nozzles.
However, the failure could not be controlled. Jonathan McDowell, of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics at X, displays a graph showing that approximately two hours after launch, Ariane 6's upper stage drifted from its planned orbit.
Anomaly in the Ariane 6 mission: the APU did not restart correctly in the second coast phase. APU operation affects orbital parameters, and these did not change as expected. It is unclear whether deorbit burn can be performed.
It became impossible to release it into the atmosphere. It will orbit above the Earth for a long time, though probably without releasing gas bubbles. Unless engineers determine the cause of the malfunction and find a way to properly restart in the second coast phase. The APU operation affects the orbital parameters, and these did not change as expected. Unclear if the deorbit burn can be performed.
July 10, 2024
Dawid Dugosz
UFOs in the sky of Czeck Republic? No, it was a rocket, say experts
On Tuesday night a spectacular ghostly phenomenon appeared in the sky. There has been speculation that it could be a UFO. In fact, the effects were produced by the upper stage of the new Ariane 6 rocket, which made its first flight. Some anomalies occurred during the de-orbit attempt.
UFO over South Moravia? It was another thing, experts explained about the unprecedented phenomenon
Space rocket launches can be spectacular, and sometimes you can also admire them in the Polish sky. This was the case of the first flight of Ariane 6, which the European Space Agency launched from French Guiana. The effects of the test were subsequently visible in our country as well.
Late Tuesday afternoon a cloud that looked like a ghost could be seen in the sky over Poland. Of course, there is no end to human imagination and so there has been speculation that it may even be a UFO. In reality, it was not an unidentified flying object, but the upper stage of the new Ariane 6 rocket, which the European Space Agency launched into space at 21:00 CET.
The first stages of the mission went smoothly. In the final phase of the test, the upper stage of the rocket was to leave orbit. To do this, the Vinci engine was restarted to steer the element at the correct angle to enter the Earth's atmosphere. This also causes the release of exhaust gases, which create unusual effects in the sky. This was the case for the phenomenon visible yesterday.
These tracks resemble those left by airplanes in the sky. However, they often take different shapes and can be more intense. You can see the phenomenon caused by the Ariane 6 upper stage in the video below.
Work on the Ariane 6 rocket took years, and although not everything went perfectly, its first flight can certainly be considered a great success. The launch went smoothly, although it was initially delayed by one hour. It was similar in the later stages of the mission related, among other things, to separation or startup of the Vinci engine in the upper stage. Some anomalies appeared several hours after launch, before the deorbit process.
We had an anomaly, we probably won't complete this part of the mission as expected, said Tina Buchner da Costa, Ariane 6 launch system architect.
Ariane 6 is a rocket that cost billions of euros to create and was created to guarantee Europe's independence in carrying out space missions. The first launch was delayed by several years. On July 9, 2024, the structure flew into space and it was a very successful flight.
UFO over the Czech Republic? It was something else, explained experts about the unprecedented phenomenon
July 10, 2024
Jakub Dosedla
Anyone observing the night sky before midnight on Tuesday, July 9, might have noticed a unique phenomenon. "UFO?" someone might have asked. No. It was a new model of the European Ariane 6 rocket, which was launched yesterday.
A bright dot and a circle around it. This is how we can describe the unusual phenomenon in the sky. "It was a completely new model of the European rocket Ariane 6, which shortly after its launch "dropped" individual satellites and successfully carried them into space," explained experts from the Brno Observatory and Planetarium.
The night sky surprised Slovaks. The bright shape and noise generated speculation about UFOs.
July 10, 2024
Tuesday night into Wednesday the summer sky was clear, but many Slovaks noticed an unusual phenomenon. What was it?
"Shortly after 23:00 hours a strange elliptical shape appeared in the sky, which, according to eyewitnesses, was moving rapidly and making loud noises,reports imeteo.sk"
Slovaks shared images of the night sky in which a strange body appeared. There have been speculations about UFOs, but the mystery has a simple explanation. It is a rocket that made its maiden flight from French Guiana on Tuesday. The European Ariane 6 rocket is also carrying the fourth Slovakian satellite GRBBeta.
Ariane in GRBBeta
Ariane 6 carries 17 technical "passengers" on board, including 11 university microsatellites and several scientific experiments. The Slovakian GRBBeta satellite is the direct successor to the GRBAlpha satellite, which recorded gamma rays from deep space.
"Ariane 6 is crucial for Europe, which absolutely needs independent access to space," Josef Aschbacher, head of the European Space Agency (ESA), told AFP.
Rockets from the U.S. rival SpaceX were used to launch satellites into orbit. The situation worsened with the war in Ukraine. Previously, ESA could also rely on Russian Soyuz rockets, but cooperation with Moscow was suspended.
Following the successful launch of the fourth Slovak satellite GRBBeta to Earth orbit, the scientific team made the first contact with it on Tuesday (July 9) at 23:03 hours. The message received means that the launch of the Ariane 6 rocket from the spaceport in French Guiana went well.
July 10, 2024 By LS
On the night of July 9-10, residents of several regions of western Russia and neighboring countries were perplexed by the sighting of a bright blue object in the sky reminiscent of a UFO, local media report.
Photographs of the mysterious phenomenon, which showed bright blue circles around it, were captured in provinces such as Belgorod, Rostov, Voronezh, Bryansk, Stavropol, Moscow and St. Petersburg. Even users in Ukraine and Belarus reported sightings of the same object.
In the images released, the unidentified object was moving slowly in Russia, standing out for its considerable size against the background stars and its unusual blue glow.
Mystery in Russia
Speculation about its origin has arisen, suggesting that it could be the Ariane 6 heavy-lift rocket.
This was recently launched from the European spaceport in French Guiana, marking a milestone after multiple delays attributed to technical failures and the covid-19 pandemic.
So far, Russian authorities have not provided an official explanation for the sighting; leaving the scientific community and the curious with questions about the exact nature of this celestial phenomenon.
Meanwhile, social networks in Russia continue to buzz with theories and debates; turning this sighting into an enigma that captures the attention of both space enthusiasts and skeptics of the unknown.
BREAKING: "UFO" SPOTTED OVER RUSSIA
Last night, residents in multiple Russian regions, including Moscow and St. Petersburg, witnessed a "UFO," later identified as the Ariane G rocket. Launched from French Guiana, it aimed to deploy several satellites but lost control due... This was launched recently from the European spaceport in French Guiana, marking a milestone after multiple delays attributed to technical failures and the covid-19 pandemic. So far, Russian authorities have not provided an official explanation for the sighting; leaving the scientific community and the curious with questions about the exact nature of this celestial phenomenon.
Meanwhile, social networks in Russia continue to buzz with theories and debates; turning this sighting into an enigma that captures the attention of both space enthusiasts and skeptics of the unknown.
This article was originally published in Marcianitos Verdes blog.
