Those who missed the Arctic show headed to the Web, causing searches on "norway spiral [4]" to immediately surge into the stratosphere.
There has got to be a logical explanation: Residents hailing a masked superhero, perhaps? A Spirograph Photoshopped into the sky? Imminent alien invasion? Well, the various independent photos and videos [5] coming in confirm it's not a fake [6]. Scientists have said it's not the Northern Lights, although it is in the north and it is a light. One Norwegian astronomer quoted by the Daily Mail [7] opined that at first he thought it was a "fireball meteor," but it went on too long. The reason behind the show is probably man-made.
More than likely say experts, it was a Russian missile. While the Russian Defense Ministry would not comment [8], the circumstantial evidence [9] is mounting that this is what a spiraling rocket jettisoning fuel looks like. And it sure is pretty.