USA TODAY NETWORK — New England What people thought was a UFO in the sky on Tuesday was actually a rocket Arianespace SA is a world-known commercial launch service provider that has been launching the Ariane 6 rocket into space for the past 45 years "As one of the rocket's boosters released excess fuel, it created a swirling, crystalized plume of exhaust in the upper atmosphere" There have been plenty of astronomical events on display over the course of the year, but what some people saw earlier in the sky this week seemed to capture the imaginations of many stargazers. A strange "pinwheel" in the sky appeared on the evening of Tuesday, Nov. 4, prompting people on social media to launch all kinds of theories about the sight in the sky. Was it a meteor? A strange shooting star? A UFO? What was in the sky on Tuesday night? The "pinwheel" wasn't a UFO, but a rocket. Arianespace launched its rocket, Ariane 6 into space from a base in French Guiana on the northeastern coast of South America in the late afternoon of Nov. 4, according to Derrick Pitts , the chief astronomer at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia . He said Arianespace SA is a world-known commercial launch service provider that has been launching its Ariane 6 rocket into space for clients for the past 45 years. He added that the company often launches from French Guiana because it is close to the Equator, allowing use of the planet’s rotation for maximum benefit. Pitts had not seen the cloud himself on the night of Nov. 4, but when he accessed images of it online the next morning, he knew exactly what it was. Why did the rocket resemble a pinwheel in the sky? "As one of the rocket's boosters released excess fuel, it created a swirling, crystalized plume of exhaust in the upper atmosphere," according to the Weather Network. Pitts said people in the Northeast region of the United States were able to see the plume of expended fuel because it existed high enough in space that it was just outside the shadow the Earth throws as it blocks the sun. That shadow, of course, is nighttime for the vast part of the Earth that is turned away from the sun during its daily rotation. “It’s easy for an object at that elevation to reflect light from the sun,” Pitts said. He added that the plume this week was “impressive.” He said he hopes the very sight of it, and the curiosity it prompted in those who saw it, will inspire people to learn more about the skies, about the happenings beyond the Earth’s atmosphere. Don't forget to check out the Leonid meteor shower The Leonids run from Nov. 3 until Dec. 2, peaking on Nov. 17, 2025, according to EarthSky online. EarthSky.com stated that the Leonid s once produced "one of the greatest meteor storms in living memory. Rates were as high as thousands of meteors per minute during a 15-minute span" on Nov. 17, 1966." Typically, stargazers will see about 10-15 meteors per hour with the Leonids, according to EarthSky.com. Shawn P. Sullivan of the Portsmouth Herald contributed to this report. Source: https://www.providencejournal.com/story/news/2025/11/06/it-wasnt-a-ufo-in-the-sky-on-tuesday-it-was-a-rocket-what-to-know-massachusetts-astronomy-space/87121160007/