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NASA's SpaceX launch lights up the sky with a giant glowing jellyfish

The Falcon 9 carried experiments to the International Space Station, including research that could advance treatments for blindness, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's; the jellyfish was only the exhaust.

On air: Hank Ledger, Gloria Vance and Chip Darnell on Meet the Pressure
Published 10:17 AM ET, Sunday, October 18, 2026

Photo: Official SpaceX Photos · CC0 · Wikimedia Commons · altered by BBN

▶ As it aired · Tech

Watch it as it aired: Hank Ledger, Gloria Vance and Chip Darnell on this story, from Meet the Pressure at 10:17 AM ET. Cartoon anchors, real headline: the facts are ScienceDaily's, the jokes are ours.

Photo: Official SpaceX Photos · CC0 · Wikimedia Commons · altered by BBN

Photo: Falcon 9 — Photo: Official SpaceX Photos · CC0 · Wikimedia Commons · altered by BBN

From the show

Interviews“It's a no-refund jellyfish, Kenji. Is it still available? Asking for a friend with a laminated chart.”Wendell Gaspard▶ Full · 1:30SpaceX Jellyfish Cloud: The Man Who Allegedly Sold a SunriseInterviews · Oct 13

At a glance

First reported by ScienceDaily: “NASA’s SpaceX launch lights up the sky with a giant glowing jellyfish”.
Covered on BBN on Sunday, October 18, 2026, at 10:17 AM ET on Meet the Pressure, by Hank Ledger, Gloria Vance and Chip Darnell.
Topics: SpaceX.

The real story

The reporting behind this segment. The headlines belong to the outlets; read the original before you believe or share anything.

ScienceDailyNASA’s SpaceX launch lights up the sky with a giant glowing jellyfish

What BBN said about it

Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorOkay, the one we teased: a SpaceX Falcon 9 painted a glowing, jellyfish-shaped cloud across the eastern United States, as sunlight lit its exhaust on an early morning launch.
Gloria Vance · World News AnchorThe rocket carried equipment and experiments to the International Space Station, including research that could advance treatments for blindness, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.
Chip Darnell · U.S. News AnchorSo the jellyfish was just the opening act?
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorThe cure for Parkinson's rode up inside a jellyfish. I've covered stranger, but not on a Sunday.

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