Cape Canaveral, Florida — A predawn SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launch illuminated Florida’s skies with a mesmerizing “jellyfish” contrail Wednesday, captivating residents from the Space Coast to north Florida and beyond as the exhaust plume caught early sunlight high in the atmosphere.

The Falcon 9 lifted off at 5:52 a.m. EST on March 4, 2026, from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on the Starlink 10-40 mission. The rocket carried 29 Starlink satellites to low Earth orbit, continuing SpaceX’s aggressive deployment of its global broadband constellation.

Within minutes of liftoff, the rocket’s exhaust created a dramatic visual effect resembling a glowing jellyfish suspended in the sky. The phenomenon, often called a “space jellyfish,” occurs when sunlight illuminates the rocket’s plume while ground observers remain in darkness during twilight hours. The expanding gases in the thin upper atmosphere form a bulbous, tentacle-like structure that appears iridescent and ethereal.

Photographers and skywatchers across Florida captured the spectacle. Images showed a bright, white-to-blue plume with radiating tendrils diffusing slowly against the predawn backdrop. Reports emerged from Cocoa Beach near the launch site, Tallahassee more than 200 miles north, and even parts of south Georgia. Social media filled with photos and videos, with residents describing the sight as “magical,” “otherworldly” and “like something from a sci-fi movie.”

NASA photographer John Kraus explained the optics in a widely shared post: The effect happens because the rocket ascends rapidly into altitudes where the sun has already risen, while lower altitudes — and observers on the ground — stay in shadow. Sunlight scatters off ice crystals and exhaust particles in the plume, producing vivid colors and the distinctive shape.

The unusual northeast trajectory of the Starlink mission enhanced visibility along the East Coast. Unlike many launches that head due east over the Atlantic, this path kept the contrail in view for longer from inland locations.

The mission itself proceeded nominally. The Falcon 9 first stage booster separated as planned and landed successfully on a droneship in the Atlantic Ocean, marking another routine recovery for SpaceX’s reusable technology. All 29 satellites were deployed into their target orbits to join the growing Starlink network, which now exceeds thousands of operational spacecraft providing internet service worldwide.

SpaceX has become synonymous with such atmospheric spectacles during predawn or twilight launches. Similar “jellyfish” effects appeared in prior missions, including a February 2026 Crew-12 astronaut flight to the International Space Station and various Starlink batches. The phenomenon draws crowds to Florida’s Space Coast and boosts public interest in spaceflight.

Local residents expressed delight at the free light show. “I stepped outside for coffee and saw this glowing thing in the sky — thought it was aliens at first!” one Tallahassee observer posted online. Others noted the contrail lingered for 15-20 minutes, fading gradually as the sun rose higher.

The launch underscores SpaceX’s relentless pace in 2026. The company aims to deploy thousands more Starlink satellites this year to expand coverage, reduce latency and support emerging applications like direct-to-cell service. Falcon 9 vehicles have proven reliable, with high success rates and frequent reflights of boosters.

Environmental and atmospheric concerns occasionally arise with rocket launches, but experts note that high-altitude plumes like this disperse quickly and have minimal long-term impact compared to ground-level emissions. The “jellyfish” is a transient optical event, not a persistent cloud.

For SpaceX, the visual bonus complements the mission’s core objective. Starlink continues to grow its subscriber base, serving remote areas, maritime users, aviation and disaster response zones. Recent milestones include partnerships for in-flight connectivity and regulatory approvals in additional countries.

Wednesday’s launch adds to Florida’s record as the busiest spaceport in the world. Cape Canaveral and nearby Kennedy Space Center host dozens of orbital missions annually, mostly from SpaceX but also United Launch Alliance and others.

As the sun climbed higher, the jellyfish contrail dissipated, leaving only photos and memories. For many Floridians, it served as a striking reminder of human ingenuity reaching for the stars — and occasionally painting the dawn sky in the process.

The event highlights how routine space operations can produce extraordinary public moments. With more launches scheduled in the coming weeks, including additional Starlink flights from both Florida and California, sky enthusiasts may get future chances to witness similar phenomena.

SpaceX’s reusable rocket architecture keeps costs down and flight cadence high, enabling such frequent spectacles. As the company pushes toward even larger vehicles like Starship, future launches could create even more dramatic atmospheric displays.

For now, the March 4 jellyfish stands as one of the year’s early highlights, blending cutting-edge technology with natural beauty in Florida’s clear morning air.

BSE has received approval from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) to launch derivative contracts for the BSE Sensex Next 30 index. The index tracks the next largest and most liquid companies in BSE 100 that are in the derivative segment and not part of BSE Sensex 30 index.

India’s oldest exchange informed about the development on Wednesday after market hours. It said the exchange will offer cash settled monthly index futures and monthly index options, with expiry date as the last Thursday of the expiry period.

BSE is yet to intimate the exchanges about the launch timing.

Currently, BSE offers Futures & Options contracts for Sensex with weekly and monthly expiries. It also offers derivatives contracts for BANKEX and SENSEX 50 with monthly expiries.

Also read: IndiGo shares drop 5% on 500+ flight cancellations; SpiceJet slides 8%

The Iran-Israel war pulled down the markets. The benchmark Nifty closed with cuts of 1.6% or 385 points at 24,480 while the 30-stock BSE Sensex tanked 1,123 points or 1.4% to settle at 79,116.19.
BSE shares have had a stellar run on the D-Street, rallying 81% in the past 12 months. The multibagger stock, which has delivered a whopping 1,658% returns over a three-year period, has been under consolidation in the past three months, slipping 4% in the said period.It has slipped below its 50-day simple moving average (SMA) of Rs 2,773 while holding its 200-day SMA of Rs 2,582.

BSE reported a 174% jump in its December quarter consolidated net profit at Rs 602 crore compared to Rs 220 crore reported in the year ago period. The profit after tax (PAT) is attributable to the shareholders of the holding company.

The company’s revenue from operations stood at Rs 1,244 crore in Q3FY26, up 62% over Rs 768 crore posted in the corresponding period of the last financial year.

The exchange reported an 8% growth in its PAT on a sequential basis versus Rs 558 crore in Q2FY26 while the topline increased by 16% quarter-on-quarter compared to Rs 1,068 crore in the July-September quarter of FY26.

The operating Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortisation (EBITDA) including core SGF stood at Rs 732 crore versus Rs 680 crore in Q2FY25 and Rs 236 crore in the year ago period. It was up 8% while surging 230% YoY.

(Disclaimer: The recommendations, suggestions, views, and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times.)

Housing planned in Pill as part of council’s local plan

Locals in a “small friendly village” in North Somerset fear that plans to build 1,000 homes in the countryside around it will turn it into a suburb of Bristol.

Pill is one of several villages in North Somerset’s greenbelt where huge amounts of new housing are proposed in the council’s local plan. In 2024, the government increased North Somerset Council’s 15-year housebuilding target from 15k homes to 24k and the council says it has to focus on the green belt as other land is at risk of flooding.

Now 2,324 people have signed a petition by Sustainable Pill and Distinct against the number of homes proposed for Pill – although only 815 of them had postcodes within North Somerset. The petition was presented to a full council meeting on February 24 by Pill’s local councillor Jenna Ho Marris (Green), who is also the council’s cabinet member for homes and health.

Ms Ho Marris said: “As a cabinet member, I did vote on this draft plan going through including these proposals but I acknowledge there is still a lot of doubt about whether central government is going to invest in the local infrastructure to support our local plan.”

The local plan is a hugely important document produced by the local council which sets out the area’s planning policies for the next 15 years and allocates areas for where new housing should go. After years of delays, North Somerset Council is set to submit its draft local plan to the planning inspector for government approval this month.

Reading out the text of the petition, Ms Ho Marris said: “The plan for Pill includes recommendations to build 1,000 houses on four areas of greenbelt land around the village. This would increase the number of homes by around 40%, threatening to turn our small friendly village into a fragmented suburb of Bristol and destroy acres of beautiful green space.

“It will also put huge pressure on existing infrastructure, particularly roads. There is definitely a need for more housing, particularly affordable housing, in North Somerset. However in our view the number proposed for Pill is completely out of proportion with the size of the village. We believe that the additional housing should be more fairly shared across North Somerset.”

Ms Ho Marris added: “Recently at a local neighbourhood health event, GPs in the area told me that they are incredibly worried about an extra 1,000 homes in their area.” She said she had spoken to the area’s integrated care board who said there were no plans to increase GP capacity.

The council’s cabinet member for planning and environment Annemieke Waite (Winford, Green) said the petition would be taken into account. She said: “I have been in touch with the planning team about this already and they are considering the content, understand very clearly the local concerns, and that this will be passed to the appointed planning inspection in due course.”

The village recently saw off a threat to close its library, after keeping the council-run library open by making more cuts elsewhere was the most supported option in a public consultation. It is also set to see its train station reopened soon as part of the ongoing restoration of the Portishead Railway.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) stepped up selling on Thursday, taking their cumulative outflows in the two trading sessions of March to around Rs 11,000 crore as escalating hostilities in West Asia rattled markets.

According to provisional data from the BSE, FIIs sold equities worth Rs 8,752 crore on Thursday. Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) provided support, buying shares worth Rs 12,068 crore, cushioning part of the fall.

The fresh outflows come after FIIs had briefly turned net buyers in February, infusing Rs 12,590 crore into Indian equities. That reversal had raised hopes of a stabilising trend following heavy withdrawals in recent months. In calendar 2025 so far, foreign investors had already pulled out around Rs 34,000 crore in January, after selling over Rs 1.5 lakh crore in the previous year.

The renewed selling coincides with a sharp deterioration in geopolitical conditions. Equity investors have seen wealth erosion of Rs 16.32 lakh crore in just two trading sessions as tensions between the US, Israel and Iran intensified.

On Wednesday, the BSE Sensex dropped over 1,122 points to close at 79,116. During the session, it had plunged as much as 1,795 points. Since Friday, the index has fallen 2,171 points, or 2.67%, following the onset of hostilities on February 28. Over the same period, the market cap of BSE-listed firms shrank by Rs 16.32 lakh crore.

Markets were shut on Tuesday for Holi, compressing volatility into just two sessions.
Ajit Mishra, SVP Research at Religare Broking, said sentiment remains fragile. “Markets traded with a negative bias on Wednesday, extending their recent corrective trend amid weak global cues and persistent geopolitical concerns. Continued foreign institutional selling and currency volatility further dampened confidence,” he said.A key driver of risk aversion has been the surge in crude oil prices. Brent crude rose 1.63% to $82.73 per barrel, reflecting concerns over supply disruptions through the Strait of Hormuz. Higher oil prices raise inflation risks, pressure the rupee and complicate the interest rate outlook, factors that typically weigh on foreign flows.

Analysts say FIIs are reacting to both global risk aversion and India-specific macro sensitivities to oil. With nearly half of India’s crude imports transiting through the Strait of Hormuz, any prolonged disruption could worsen the current account deficit and fiscal pressures.

From a technical standpoint, Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research at Kotak Securities, said the near-term outlook remains weak but oversold. He sees 24,300 on the Nifty and 78,500 on the Sensex as crucial support levels. “If the market sustains above this level, the immediate resistance would be at 24,600/79,500. Conversely, a decline below 24,300/78,500 could change the sentiment,” he said, adding that volatility is expected to remain elevated.

For now, domestic institutions have offset part of the foreign selling. But with crude prices elevated and the conflict showing little sign of immediate resolution, the direction of FII flows could remain a decisive factor for market stability in the coming sessions.