I thought I was watching a rocket launch.

a reply to: turbo8

Remarkable picture there turbs.

Kind regards,

bally

originally posted by: turbo8
notice how this comes from the ground, all other planes didn't

It is called perspective. People don't realise just how far away aircraft contrails can be seen.

See following that was filmed years ago by a member of ATS. He and his son were fooled by perspective.



The following was from a Keysnews article.

It's a rocket, it's a missile, no, it's a ... BY ADAM LINHARDT Citizen Staff [email protected] On New Year's Eve, some Florida Keys residents were awed by an unusual sight in the south to southwest skies off Key West. Recreational boaters, commercial fishermen and others snapped photographs they sent to the Navy, asking what the fast-moving object was that left a thick plume in its long wake, which glowed orange in the setting sun. Some speculated, and worried, that it was a rocket or missile, or military test. "To me, at first, it really looked like a missile," said commercial fisherman Lee Starling. After seeing video of the object on YouTube, Navy officials this week said the sighting was a less nefarious seasonal phenomenon. "Not until we saw the YouTube video could we really see that it's an airplane," Naval Air Station Key West spokesman Jim Brooks said. "But we get calls all the time over the holidays." To accommodate the increased air traffic during the holidays, the U.S. government allows international commercial airliners to fly in areas that typically are restricted airspace, Brooks said. The uncommon sight is coupled with the curvature of the Earth, which makes the planes appear to be flying vertically, he said. "We looked at it and it's a contrail," Brooks said of the visible trail of condensed water vapor made by the exhaust of the aircraft engine. "Not only that, but looking at the direction, it's probably coming from the Yucatan Peninsula. ... Because that's normally restricted airspace, we don't see it all the time. But we see them enough to know that it's not a strange or new phenomenon." Liberty Clipper Capt. Ron Opiela said he's seen it before. And he and Starling said they saw two more planes in the same general airspace a few days later. "There's nothing supernatural or covert," Opiela said. "The planes flying from the west use Key West as a way point. It wasn't a missile, but it's always pretty cool to see."

See following video that shows how perspective can be deceptive. The contrail directly in front is not going vertical but is simple due to perspective.



A perfect example of how an aircraft contrail can confuse a lot of people.

Remember the "California Missile from 2010" ?

Contrail Science Link

a reply to: tommyjo

We had a thread that went at least three pages with someone insisting that the contrail coming towards them could only be a rocket going straight up.

originally posted by: turbo8
another one, it abruptly turned here.

It isn't really "abruptly turning" nor it is going up or vertical. Again you are being fooled by perspective. The aircraft contrail is parallel to the earth and the aircraft is simply vectoring onto a new heading.

With that picture you have the chance to find the actual aircraft and its possible playback on flight tracking software. All that is required is the filming location and exact time that the picture was taken. If the aircraft was visible on flight tracking playback you would see that the aircraft is flying level and simply making a course change. It is simply perspective that plays a part and is leading you and many others astray.

Next time you see a contrail going up use flight tracking software to see how perspective can lead you astray.

Flight Radar 24 app

From apps on following.

Flight Radar 24 link

As I've already stated people can be deceived by just how far contrails can be seen. In some cases they can be over a hundred miles long.

How Far Away is that Contrail

"Coming towards Las Vegas" says it all for me. Probably some military aircraft flying in formation and then breaking formation. F/A-18s going to Fallon do it all of the time.

a reply to: JIMC5499

Red Flag kicked off today too.

Looks like a Rocket to me, that doesn't look like a commercial plane, could be military plane. Any Military bases near by?
I used to be in a military base when i was younger so i could tell its either a rocket or a military plane.

originally posted by: JIMC5499
"Coming towards Las Vegas" says it all for me. Probably some military aircraft flying in formation and then breaking formation. F/A-18s going to Fallon do it all of the time.

By that definition could be Hercules or something similar to do it.

a reply to: AtlasHawk

Unless it's a fighter, or a B-52, there's no way to tell military from civilian just by contrail. Even with a fighter it can be confusing if it's something like a CRJ with the engines close together. Just about all the support aircraft are either based on commercial airframes, or have similar designs as far as engine layout and type.

a reply to: AtlasHawk

Hercules generally don't leave contrails. Even on long flights they tend to fly below 30,000 feet which puts them below contrail altitudes.

a reply to: Zaphod58

Your right my bad not a Hercules but maybe B52 or some kind of fighter.

a reply to: Phage

Contrails don't develop until a certain height? I didn't know that.

How high does an aircraft have to be for a contrail to appear?

Also, a contrail is just the planes exhaust, correct?

a reply to: KawRider9

Usually somewhere around 34,000 feet. It's a fairly narrow altitude window that they form at.

What are contrails?

a reply to: KawRider9

No, not at any particular altitude but the conditions which are conducive to the formation of contrails do not often occur much below 30,000 feet.

No a contrail is not exhaust. It is a cloud of ice crystals. The actual exhaust is generally invisible.

originally posted by: turbo8
another one, it abruptly turned here.

If your camera time is accurate and you took it around 1pm PST then I would say that the flight that you photographed was a Bombardier Global 6000 going over at nearly 43,000 feet.

1302 Pacific Standard Time = 2102 GMT

From the EXIF is has 13:02 which I take as local time?



This is a classic example of just how far contrails can be seen and how perspective comes into play.

The track shows the aircraft changing course initially to the left and then later changing course to the right. This is reflected in the contrail.





The following link should be active for approximately a week before data overwrite.

Flightradar24 track showing flight from 2051 GMT

Thanks! camera time is correct

I can give you my rough coordinates and direction I took the photo at too if that helps.

originally posted by: tommyjo

originally posted by: turbo8
another one, it abruptly turned here.

If your camera time is accurate and you took it around 1pm PST then I would say that the flight that you photographed was a Bombardier Global 6000 going over at nearly 43,000 feet.

1302 Pacific Standard Time = 2102 GMT

From the EXIF is has 13:02 which I take as local time?

This is a classic example of just how far contrails can be seen and how perspective comes into play.

The track shows the aircraft changing course initially to the left and then later changing course to the right. This is reflected in the contrail.

The following link should be active for approximately a week before data overwrite.

Flightradar24 track showing flight from 2051 GMT

originally posted by: turbo8
Thanks! camera time is correct

I can give you my rough coordinates and direction I took the photo at too if that helps.

Thanks that would be great if you could provide that info! Apologies for the late response.

a reply to: tommyjo

Sorry for the late reply as well.

I was standing here: 36.055738, -115.324419 and looking at about here: 35.897818, -115.497582

I did not know that those little business jets could fly so high!

originally posted by: turbo8
a reply to: tommyjo

Sorry for the late reply as well.

I was standing here: 36.055738, -115.324419 and looking at about here: 35.897818, -115.497582

I did not know that those little business jets could fly so high!

No problem. Thanks for the info. It must be a blast flying them!

a reply to: turbo8

The new generation bizjets regularly cruise at 0.9 mach and up to 50,000 feet. That's one of the big things that makes them popular. You can hop in one and fly above and faster than commercial traffic.

The current fastest business jets are the Citation X, with a 3400 nm range at a max speed of Mach 0.935, and a ceiling of 51,000 feet. It's followed by the Gulfstream G650, at 7000-7500 nm (650 and 650ER), max speed of 0.925 and 51,000 feet.