Missile contrail or jet?

About 30 minutes ago coming home from McDonalds after church, me and a buddy spotted a weird looking contrail in the clear sky. It rose vertically from the horizon, and did a 45 degree turn. Following the contrail with our eyes, at the end of it was a tiny fast-moving something. When I got home I looked for info on the web, because I wanted to find some kind of picture of contrails from vertical take-off jets but cannot find any. I had left my cellphone at home (because it was church and can't use them there) and had no way to take a picture at the time. This was definitely something that had taken off VERTICALLY and then did a 45 degree turn. I drew a quick picture in Paint to show what I mean. I've never seen anything like it. On the web it says planes don't leave contrails until they reach flying altitude, and so would it be a missile? I live in Kitsap County WA and the direction of the object was going southeast in a straight line after it made the 45.

Any thoughts?

I'm in tacoma... I can't say for sure, but I swear it was today or yesterday I seen something like this W by NW or NW.... Somewhere like that... I didn't take note, but I did notice... Wish I had taken a pic... I have no answers for ya, but I think I seen the same thing-ish. No idea what it was, and I couldn't tell exactly if it was vert, or just long, horizontally, giving a vert perspective look.

Maybe not...

Keep looking up.

Neat : ) Is it possible though that the contrail was actually coming towards you over the horizon? Maybe you were looking at it at an angle that appeared to show it going vertical, when in fact it was coming straight at you.
Hard to imagine someones perspective sometimes,
s&f

Was it anything like this?

a reply to: AreUKiddingMe

I've seen a contrail like that before. I think it was just coming up over the horizon, though. Never could figure out the 45 degree angle. You'd think a jet would fly in a straight line to its destination. But I'm sure there are lots of reasons for them to do angles like that.

I think I found a picture of it.

This was posted on Twitter


Twitter

a reply to: MagicWand67

Sure looks like a plane to me. The almost head-on angle will exaggerate the angle of the turn.

If I have a bit of time later I will see if I can identify it.

Edit: no need. Been identified already.

mobile.twitter.com...



Discussion here.

a reply to: AreUKiddingMe

While the contrail may appear to be as you assume, a vertical motion and then a leveling out, there is no way for you to know whether it rose vertically and "leveled out" or if it was simply a high jet moving normally, horizontally, across the sky and then made a directional change as it was more over your position. The more distant a jet that is coming directly toward you, the more it looks to be traveling vertically. You just have to wait to see....

originally posted by: MagicWand67
I think I found a picture of it.

This was posted on Twitter

This illustrates clearly that the plane was coming over the horizon towards the camera, rather than upwards from a closer point.

a reply to: AreUKiddingMe

I see planes making 45 degrees turns all the time. Planes, even commercial ones, don't always follow a straight path - sometimes they deviate so to avoid traffic or storm clouds.

Was there a storm coming in?

originally posted by: Rob48

originally posted by: MagicWand67
I think I found a picture of it.

This was posted on Twitter

This illustrates clearly that the plane was coming over the horizon towards the camera, rather than upwards from a closer point.

Indeed. Contrails sometimes expand after a period of time - the older trail is sometimes wider than the one closest to the plane. The plane could still be at the same altitude, but his widening contrail make it look as if it went up the stratosphere.

originally posted by: swanne

originally posted by: Rob48

originally posted by: MagicWand67
I think I found a picture of it.

This was posted on Twitter

This illustrates clearly that the plane was coming over the horizon towards the camera, rather than upwards from a closer point.

Not necessarily. Contrails sometimes expand after a period of time - the older trail is sometimes wider than the one closest to the plane. The plane could still be at the same altitude, but his widening contrail make it look as if it went up the stratosphere.

I think you are arguing the same point as me. This plane wasn't gaining altitude, it was coming more or less towards the camera. We can see which is the front of the trail, because there's a sharp start point! The old decaying trail stretches right back over the distant mountains.

Contrails can easily look vertical if a plane is heading straight at you and you can see a nice long trail:

a reply to: Rob48

Oh, so we are in agreement after all. hehe, Sorry, my bad.

Here, I edited my last post. Thanks mate!

originally posted by: Rob48
a reply to: MagicWand67

Sure looks like a plane to me. The almost head-on angle will exaggerate the angle of the turn.

If I have a bit of time later I will see if I can identify it.

Edit: no need. Been identified already.

mobile.twitter.com...

Discussion here.

Thanks for the link. I guess I wasn't the only one it appeared strange to. But I guess it was a private jet, making a turn not going straight up. It sure looked to me like it was going vertical but must have been an optical illusion.
This is a pic of exactly how it appeared to me

"Mick West
Mick West
@MickWest
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@KevinKIRO7 @KIRO7Seattle Tracked it down - it was a private jet flying at 41,000 feet, above normal traffic." (from twitter)

a reply to: AreUKiddingMe

had to be a missile,a jet can't make manuevers like that,without filling every airsick bag on board!

a reply to: swanne

The sky was clear, not a cloud in the sky.

a reply to: blkcwbyhat

The more I think about it the more I'm thinking it had to be a missile, no matter what the official story is. It was just going Way too fast to be a private plane.

originally posted by: blkcwbyhat
a reply to: AreUKiddingMe

had to be a missile,a jet can't make manuevers like that,without filling every airsick bag on board!

You can tell what manoeuvres it made from a still photo? How?

It is just a gentle (10-20 degree) turn which appears sharper due to foreshortening.

Why are so many people on ATS seemingly incapable of understanding perspective?!

a reply to: AreUKiddingMe

What makes you assume it was a private plane? It could have been military.

a reply to: Zaphod58

It was a Bombardier Global 600, flying at 41000ft.