Pink lights appeared in the sky in Temple, Texas, in early December, sparking curiosity among residents, but specialists say that there was a reasonable explanation.
Despite some thinking that the pink clouds were something from “out of this world,” specialists explained the phenomenon was caused by a “malfunction with the blackout shades inside the facility” at the Revol Greens lettuce farm, KWTX-TV reported.
Hey, did anyone else catch that mysterious glowing pink Texas sky last night between 12:00am and 2:00am? It was in the southern direction southeast of Temple, Texas.
Credit – Discover Downtown Belton pic.twitter.com/WPkCq7WFb7— Not El Chapo (@ScottEnlow) November 21, 2023
“We recently completed our last leg of the current phase of our greenhouse, which brought online the full 20 acres of the facility,” Revol Greens CRO Tom Thompson wrote in an email to KWTX.
“There was a malfunction in the blackout shades that we use at night. Those blackout shades serve multiple purposes for our team, from keeping the light in, to acting as a thermal blanket that helps our growing team better control the climate,” the email continued.
Thompson said that the light that many were seeing was a light that is used to help plant growth while the sun isn’t shining, allowing the plants to grow more while the days are shorter.
“To grow 365 days a year and eliminate burning fuel or using up precious time off the product’s shelf life by transporting lettuce from a field in California or Mexico, there are times of the year where we extend the day with the use of LED light,” Thompson said.
Thompson said that now that the facility is fully functioning, he doesn’t expect Revol Greens to be the cause of any more mysterious lights in the sky.
“We regularly calibrate these shades, and, now that the facility is fully up and running, hope to not have any more false alarms of visitors from another world,” he said.
Have you ever seen something you couldn’t explain in the night sky?
These types of grow lights are fairly common, with Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center in Dallas also using the process to help plants grow.
Dr. Joe Masabni, a vegetable specialist with Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center, said, “The light that is appearing to be pink in the sky is not actually pink in the greenhouse.”
“The pink light that you’re seeing is really a combination of blue and red light. Science tells us blue and red is what the plants like the most for photosynthesis to grow best and grow well.”
“Every company has their own business model,” he said, regarding why the greenhouses were being used at night.
“We do know that electricity is cheaper at night. Another way to provide supplemental lighting is, at night, to extend the day.”
Masabni assured the public, “There is no light pollution affecting the plants, the birds, the deer, the animals or people.”
He also said that more companies are planning to move to Texas and have been working with companies like Revel Green.
“We are seeing that slowly but steadily, every year, we get two or three visitors who want to move into Texas and build large-scale greenhouses coming from California or other regions or expanding,” he said.
