A strange white streak cut across the night sky above the western and central United States on May 17, 2025. The event was similar to a massive smoke plume, but it didn’t emit any heat or glow like typical smoke. The display lingered for about 10 minutes, appearing in long exposure images from Colorado to New Mexico.
According to astronomer Jonathan McDowell of the Harvard and Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, the culprit behind the streak was exhaust from a Chinese rocket’s upper stage, which vented fuel into space. This is a routine procedure called a fuel dump, where upper stages release leftover propellant before reentry.
The plume stood still to the eye because it was so high up in the atmosphere, and sunlight caught its tiny crystals and droplets, making them glow white instead of green or red like typical auroras. The event occurred during an energetic geomagnetic storm that pushed auroras unusually far south into the continental US.
While some skywatchers initially thought the plume might be STEVE, a narrow band sometimes seen alongside auroras, further analysis confirmed it was indeed a sunlit rocket exhaust plume. This type of event is harmless to people on the ground but can briefly affect radio propagation. Satellite operators take steps to ensure responsible mission design and transparency for unusual sightings.
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Source: https://www.earth.com/news/strange-white-streak-of-light-resembled-smoke-plume-was-photographed-for-10-minutes-in-us-skies