Residents across parts of Florida could be treated to an unusual sight in the predawn sky on Tuesday as SpaceX prepares to launch its Bandwagon-5 mission from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, which is located on Florida’s Atlantic coast in Brevard County, on Cape Canaveral, just southeast of the Kennedy Space Center.
The mission is scheduled to launch during a one-hour window beginning at 6:30 a.m. ET on Tuesday, October 20, shortly before sunrise.
This timing means the flight could produce a striking phenomenon commonly nicknamed a "space jellyfish," although whether one appears will depend on the exact liftoff time and atmospheric conditions.
Newsweek has reached out to SpaceX and NASA for comment.
What Is SpaceX Launching?
SpaceX operates a rideshare program that allows satellite operators to share space aboard its rockets. This particular mission, Bandwagon-5, will use the company's Falcon 9 rocket to carry multiple satellites into orbit during a single launch.
The mission will carry 32 payloads, including satellites from ICEYE, Tomorrow.io, and PlanetiQ, among others, according to the official SpaceX deployment schedule.
The bottom part of the Falcon 9 rocket, known as the first stage or reusable booster, has already launched and recovered 18 times, and Tuesday’s Bandwagon-5 mission is expected to mark its 19th flight. According to SpaceX, it has previously supported missions including Crew-9, Firefly Blue Ghost Mission 1, Fram2, and 10 Starlink launches. After separating from the rest of the rocket, the reusable booster is expected to land on "A Shortfall of Gravitas," one of SpaceX’s floating landing platforms, called a droneship, in the Atlantic Ocean.
Why Was the Launch Delayed?
SpaceX originally targeted Monday, October 19, for the launch, with Tuesday as the backup option. However, "due to unfavorable recovery weather conditions" it was forced to delay.
According to the National Weather Service, strong northeasterly winds affected the Cape Canaveral area on Monday, with gusts reaching as high as 28 mph during the early morning. Although SpaceX hasn't confirmed whether the wind played a part in the delay, strong winds could stop a rocket launch if they exceed safety limits and could affect the rocket’s flight through the atmosphere.
The windy conditions were expected to ease on Tuesday, though. The NWS forecast for the Cape Canaveral area currently shows light north to north-northeasterly winds of around 10 to 15 mph, with the agency expecting the northeast winds to "let up just a bit" over central Florida.
What Is a ‘Space Jellyfish’?
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Despite the name, a space jellyfish has nothing to do with an animal in space.
NASA describes the phenomenon as sunlight from a sunrise or sunset illuminating a rocket's exhaust plume, producing a unique bright, expanding shape that resembles a jellyfish.
The effect happens because spectators on the ground can still be in darkness or twilight while the rocket has climbed high enough for its exhaust to be illuminated by the rising or setting sunlight.
Florida residents recently got a particularly dramatic example. NASA said the October 13 CRS-35 Falcon 9 mission generated a "jellyfish" after taking off at 6:33 a.m. EDT, with the illuminated exhaust plumes visible across parts of the eastern United States.
Where and When Could the Space Jellyfish Be Visible?
For Tuesday's launch, spectators should watch the sky around the 6:30 to 7:30 a.m. ET launch window, particularly from areas with an unobstructed view toward Cape Canaveral and the launch trajectory.
SpaceX's webcast will provide the latest indication of whether the countdown is proceeding. You can watch it here.
The potential spectacle is closely tied to timing. Sunrise at Cape Canaveral is around 7:26 a.m. ET on Tuesday, meaning the beginning of SpaceX's launch window comes nearly an hour before sunrise. The pre-dawn timing could increase the chances of a space jellyfish appearing, as the rising sun’s sunlight might illuminate the rocket’s exhaust high above Earth while the sky remains darker for the viewers below.
The closer the launch gets to sunrise, however, the brighter ground-level sky could make the contrast less dramatic. So, although a space jellyfish is possible, it’s not guaranteed, and its appearance will depend on the exact liftoff time, cloud cover, atmospheric conditions, and how sunlight catches the expanding exhaust plume.
Newsweek’s reporters and editors used Martyn, our AI assistant, to produce this story. Learn more about Martyn here. Contact Newsweek editors for this story: Robert Greenall and Ben Kelly