A SpaceX rocket carrying 25 satellites for the company’s Starlink internet service sent an expansive white plume across the Southern California sky Monday night, a glow that could be seen all up and down the coast.
The launch came as people along the shoreline were already looking up. Debbie Granow, who often heads to the beach to watch launches, said, “It’s thrilling,” and added, “It’s like a shooting star on steroids.” Kathy Van Orden, a retired Torrance science teacher and member of the Vandenberg Space Launch Facebook group, said her fascination started after she and her husband watched a SpaceX launch from the sand. “It’s that feeling of awe,” she said. “Often, I just walk up to Sepulveda (Boulevard) to watch, but it’s much better from the beach.”
Vandenberg Space Force Base, about four hours north of the South Bay, has become a regular source of those sightings across Southern California. Space launches from the base can be seen on a regular basis, and rocket watching has become a hobby for some residents along the coast. The pace has also picked up: There were 72 launches out of Vandenberg in 2025, according to National Defense Magazine, up from 51 launches the year before.
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The timing also put the Monday night launch in the same week as another major space milestone. NASA’s biggest rocket ever launched four astronauts last week on a slingshot journey around the moon, including Victor Glover, a native of Pomona. Their historic flight is set to end on Friday, April 10, when it splashes down off the coast of San Diego, and the Orion capsule may produce a sonic boom as it re-enters Earth’s atmosphere and barrels toward the Pacific.
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For viewers on the coast, that means the sky may keep delivering reasons to look up. People can get updates on upcoming launches with spacelaunchnow.me and spacelaunchschedule.com.
