- - Colorado Residents Can’t Believe the Glowing 'Mystery Light' in the Sky. Here’s What It Likely Was

Ashley VegaJanuary 21, 2026 at 5:49 AM

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Stock image of downtown Denver -

A glowing object moving across Colorado’s sky sparked a wave of videos and online theories Sunday night

One resident said it was “way brighter than a plane,” as people across the region asked, “What is that?”

Experts later suggested theories on what the mysterious light could be

Coloradans spent part of their Sunday evening looking up after a mysterious glowing object appeared to drift across the sky around 6 p.m. Videos soon poured in from across the state, showing a bright ball of light moving slowly but steadily from west to east.

The sightings were reported in areas including Silverthorne, South Park and Cañon City, according to CBS News. As clips spread online, social media quickly filled with theories about what people were seeing — and whether it was something rare or even otherworldly.

But the explanation turned out to be much more familiar than many initially imagined. The outlet reported that all signs pointed to the light being connected to a SpaceX launch from earlier in the evening, visible over Colorado because of how high it was in the atmosphere.

MIGUEL J. RODRIGUEZ CARRILLO/AFP via Getty

Stock image of a Space X rocket

Summit County resident Michael Walsh was one of the people who caught the moment on camera. “I look over Buffalo Mountain here, and I see what I think is a plane, like, with its headlights through some clouds or something,” Walsh said.

Then, he realized it didn’t quite add up. “I’m like, ‘No, that’s not that. That’s way brighter than a plane. What is that?’ ” he said.

After Walsh posted his video to Facebook, the reaction was almost instant. CBS News reported that within minutes, people across the region began sharing their own footage and asking the same question: “What is that?”

Some online speculation even leaned toward aliens as a joke — a theory astronomer Luke Huxley told the outlet he would have loved to be true. “I think that’s what we’re all waiting for, but, yeah, I believe this to be the SpaceX rocket,” Huxley said, as per the outlet.

Huxley pointed to the object’s brightness, movement and trajectory as clues that it lined up with a SpaceX Starlink launch out of California earlier Sunday evening. He also said the plume or smoke ring appearing ahead of the light could happen when a rocket moves through different layers of the atmosphere or briefly changes its dynamics during flight.

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He added that the direction also made sense, explaining that rockets typically travel west to east to take advantage of Earth’s rotation and conserve fuel. Huxley also noted that many modern launches now carry dozens of Starlink satellites at a time.

Even after the mystery was seemingly solved, many people still seemed amazed by what they witnessed. Huxley explained that twilight can be one of the best times to spot rocket launches because the object remains illuminated by sunlight even after the ground has gone dark, creating that glowing effect in the sky.

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”