Culture
Why Did a Chinese Rocket Break Up Spectacularly Over America?
It had launched a scientific or military satellite, depending on which side you believe.
On Monday night, John Arnold drove 180 miles into the Montana countryside to take long-exposure photos of the aurora borealis. While setting up his camera he happened to turn around and that's when saw it: a giant ball of flame creeping through the sky right at him.
"At first, it almost appeared suspended," says Arnold, a 48-year-old fly-fishing guide. "It took me a second to realize that it was coming at me and what it was." Then, as the object moved in front of his vision, it began to break up: first into a couple of pieces, then into dozens of bright shards and long tongues of orange fire.