Skywatchers stunned as jaw dropping glowing spiral appears over Europe

A glowing spiral observed in the UK sky on Monday (24 March) evening was caused by a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launch.

The luminous formation, which appeared as a cloud-like spiral, was visible across England, Wales, and other parts of Europe.

A webcam in Croatia caught the spectacle in clear detail as it traced across the sky.

The phenomenon occurred due to the SpaceX rocket ejecting leftover fuel - which instantly froze at high altitudes - back to Earth.

The SpaceX rocket launched from Florida at approximately 17:50 GMT for a classified US government mission.