What was that strange light seen in the sky over California?

People throughout Sonoma County and California flooded social media Saturday night with comical and curious comments about a bright light that flashed through the sky off the California coast.

“Rocket blast while we are in a meteor shower? I don’t know what to believe,” wrote one Sonoma County resident on The Press Democrat’s Facebook page.

“Bright light seen in the sky over Southern California and Arizona - UFOs coming to Earth?” was the title of a video posted of the flash on Youtube.

“Anybody else see the big white ball of light in the sky?” wrote state Sen. Mike McGuire, D-Healdsburg, on Facebook. “Wow.”

According to a statement issued by Cmdr. Ryan Perry with the Navy’s Third Fleet, the Navy fired an unarmed missile from a submarine off the coast of Southern California, creating the bright light that streaked across the state and was visible as far away as Nevada and Arizona.

Perry told the San Diego Union-Tribune that the Navy Strategic Systems Programs conducted the missile test in the Pacific Test Range northwest of Los Angeles.

Perry said the launches are conducted on a frequent basis and that information about such test launches is classified prior to the launch.

The lack of information about the streak of light led to a flurry of calls to law enforcement agencies and lit up social media as people posted video of the celestial sight.