For those among us who aren’t available or even awake for that sunrise stuff (because hey, there’s a sunset thing which is pretty fabulous, too), pre-dawn launches most often don’t make our to-do lists.
But on June 4, photos from FLORIDA TODAY senior photographer Malcolm Denemark proved once again that beautiful things happen as the sun and rockets rise.
In the latest Photo of the Week, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying 29 Broadband satellites bursts through dark clouds after leaving Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on Thursday, June 4.
“It would have probably been a jellyfish launch if it had gone as scheduled at 5:53 a.m.,” Denemark said, referring to the phenomenon which occurs during the few minutes just before sunrise or just after sunset when the ground is dark, but sunlight is present in the furthest reaches of the atmosphere.
“But the launch was delayed until 6:26 a.m., just after sunrise. Still a beautiful time for a launch, with dark clouds framing the rocket as it headed northeast.”
This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Launch lights up Space Coast day and heads into Photo of the Week space
Reporting by Britt Kennerly, Florida Today / Florida Today
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Britt Kennerly, Florida Today | USA TODAY Network
