SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket launch created an eerie light show in the sky above Southern California

Screenshot via Twitter/Ali Maadelat

A view of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launch from Southern California.

SpaceX launched its Falcon 9 rocket on Friday night, creating a dazzling display in the sky above Southern California, and baffling some people who had no idea what was happening.

Watch some of the reactions from the ground:

Some people were unsure what was happening. "What did I just witness," one man asked:

"It must be a comet."

"Are we about to die?"

SpaceX launched this Falcon 9 mission from California's Vandenberg Air Force Base, carrying a collection of 10 satellites into low-Earth orbit. The payload is destined for a constellation of communications satellites owned by Iridium Communications. SpaceX conducted a similar launch for the same company in June.

Earlier on Friday, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk offered photographic proof of a claim he made earlier this month - that he would launch his 2008 Tesla Roadster to Mars orbit in 2018. Musk, who also owns Tesla, shared a striking photo of the Roadster perched inside the carbon fiber fairing of a Falcon Heavy rocket.

"Test flights of new rockets usually contain mass simulators in the form of concrete or steel blocks. That seemed extremely boring," Musk wrote in his Instagram post.

Dave Mosher contributed to this report.