# noctiluminescent cloud west of San Diego, June 27 2006? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 28, 2006, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/noctiluminescent-cloud-west-of-san-diego-june-27-2006/362445 "2006-06-28T04:17:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 3\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Hooleehootoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/eada6e/32.png) [@Hooleehootoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hooleehootoo)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2006, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/noctiluminescent-cloud-west-of-san-diego-june-27-2006/362445/1 "2006-06-28T04:17:45Z")
Coming out of a restaurant in northern San Diego tonight at 8:50, I saw a small glowing cloud in the western sky. It was about double the angle above the horizon of the moon at that time. Local sunset was about 8:00. If the cloud would have been more linear, I would have guessed it was a contrail from a launch of a missile from Vandenberg, but it was the wrong shape. I find no notices about a launch from there this evening. As I understand it, this is not the right latitude for noctiluminescent clouds. It was warm and humid here today, with some light rain at 9 am and there were forcasts for thundershowers in the mountains east of here? Anybody else see it? ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2006, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/noctiluminescent-cloud-west-of-san-diego-june-27-2006/362445/2 "2006-06-28T04:19:21Z")
There was a launch this evening sometime after 8pm. That was what you saw. ---
**Author:** ![aerodave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f08c70/32.png) [@aerodave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aerodave)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2006, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/noctiluminescent-cloud-west-of-san-diego-june-27-2006/362445/3 "2006-06-28T15:17:21Z")
"The flash of light you saw in the sky was not a UFO. Swamp gas from a weather balloon was trapped in a thermal pocket and reflected the light from Venus. "