Federal Drive

Pentagon stumped by California contrail

The Pentagon said Tuesday it did not know what created a vapor trail that crossed the skies off the Southern California coast and resembled a missile launch.

Federal News Network Staff

November 10, 2010 9:40 am

< a min read

The Pentagon says it does not know what created a vapor trail that crossed the skies off the Southern California coast and resembled a missile launch. Video shows an object flying through the evening sky, leaving a large contrail. A news helicopter owned by KCBS in Los Angeles shot the video. Pentagon officials say they’re stumped. Nobody within the Department of Defense can explain it, saying they’re not aware of any launches in that area. NORAD, issued a statement jointly with NORTHCOM, saying that the contrail was not the result of a foreign military launching a missile. One expert called it an optical illusion.

This story is part of Federal News Radio’s daily DoD Report. For more defense news, click here.