Space X Falcon 9 rocket over San Diego

The launch of a Space X Falcon 9 rocket at about 8:45 p.m. Sunday, June 23 from Vandenburg Space Force Base in Santa Barbara produced this unusually long trail in the skies over San Diego as it headed in a southerly direction before disappearing from view.

The rocket carried 20 Starlink satellites including 13 with Direct to Cell capabilities to low-Earth orbit.

Peninsula Beacon photographer Scott Hopkins captured this image of the rocket’s trail from his home using an iPhone 13 ProMax. Exposure was 18 mm. for 1/4 second at f/1.8 handheld.