Tourists flock to Las Vegas for many entertainment options, not the least of which are its visual attractions, which take many shapes.
Performance arts are a big part of the experience. Cirque du Soleil at Bellagio Resort & Casino, operated by MGM Resorts International (MGM), is an example of flamboyant entertainment that thrills crowds.
Famous acts, such as Adele, Maroon 5, the B-52s, Aerosmith and country stars such as Luke Bryan and Garth Brooks perform in the city.
The 4.2-mile stretch that makes up the Las Vegas Strip showcases attractions such as Caesars Entertainment's (CZR) Eiffel Tower at Caesars Paris Las Vegas, the Statue of Liberty likeness at MGM's New York New York and the popular fountains in front of Bellagio.
Other attractions for visitors are in plentiful supply. Professional sports franchises such as the NHL's Las Vegas Golden Nights and the Las Vegas Raiders of the NFL play home games in town.
And, of course, ever-present options such as gambling--including slot machines, card games, sports betting and other activities--are sources of fun that entertain visitors as well.
Las Vegas Visitors see Something Completely Surprising
But one unexpected sight mystified Las Vegas during the holidays.
Tourists' attention was fixated on the night sky on Dec. 23, when many guests of Sin City thought they were witnessing something they had never expected and had not seen before: UFOs.
Alien spacecraft, some thought, were hovering over the city.
"There is a #ufo above Sapphire Las Vegas right now!" wrote Twitter user @HotHeadBrett, adding a video to his tweet.
"UFOs above the Las Vegas strip?" tweeted @mightypadula, while posting a video of his own.
So What was the Phenomenon Being Witnessed?
It turns out that the explanation was related to the wild weather system that roared across the country during the weekend. It involved a weather activity known as a light pillar.
"Long pillars of multicolored light streaking the sky seem like the perfect backdrop for impending alien invasion, but in reality, light pillars are a common effect that can be found all over the world," the National Weather Service explains on its website.
"They do come from above--not extraterrestrials, but tiny crystals of ice hanging in the atmosphere," the explanation continues. "Ice is very thin, shaped like plates with hexagonal faces. When ice drifts down through the air, it falls close to horizontally. At the top and bottom are the faces with more area. Ice is very reflective, so when light hits those wider faces, it bounces around and reflects off more ice crystals."
So what people were witnessing was simply the brilliant lights from Sin City being reflected by weather activity in the sky.
"That means we get these vertically stacked mirrors floating in the atmosphere," the National Weather Service further explains. "The light hitting it gets reflected up and up (or down and down, depending on the source), and becomes a radiant column in the sky. Light can come from the sun, moon, cities, street lights--any strong light source."
Las Vegas visitors got to enjoy the spectacle of the city's bright and colorful lights in a rare new way: on the ground and in the mystery of its reflection from above.
