Lifestyle

Many Houstonians Saw a Strange Streak of Light in the Sky

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Tony Maples Photography

 

“What’s that in the sky?” David Nuno of ABC 13 asked his Twitter audience around 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, December 6. He posted a video showing a streak of bright orangey-pink diagonal light that appeared to be moving very slowly toward land.

Many people in the Sugar Land area reported seeing the streak in the sky along with residents of North Houston as well. The strange light was visible for about two minutes before it seemed to disappear (though it never looked like it made landfall). Several people posted on social media about the oddity, wondering if they should be worried or if they should just admire the small light show.

According to ABC 13, “Chief Meteorologist Tim Heller believes the flash of light was a jet with a short condensation trail.” And it looks like Phil Plait, writer of Bad Astronomy Blog for Slate.com, agrees with that assessment. He tweeted, “Almost certainly airplane/contrail lit by setting sun. Very common that time of day to be mistaken for meteor.”

It’s not quite as thrilling as the blue streak seen in the Texas sky earlier this year, but it still provided a learning experience for many curious people in the Houston area.