UF... Oh that's what they are! Chain of Elon Musk's Starlink satellites cause a stir as they streak through the skies of western Europe in dazzling display

SpaceX's Starlink project has made a very visible appearance above much of western Europe, startling sky-gazers. 

A string of bright lights appeared to march uniformly across the sky last night, with photographers capturing the event and sharing footage on Twitter. 

Prominent comedian, science communicator and physicist Dara O'Briain took to Twitter to bemoan the man-made constellation, saying 'there goes the night sky'.  

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The string of lights could be seen travelling through the sky across western Europe

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Picture of Elon Musk's Starlink satellites passing over Essex last night by amateur photographer James Newman. Britons were left amazed and confused as Elon Musk's Starlink satellites lit up the night's sky

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A computer-generated image from several long-exposure images shows Starlink satellites in the sky above the concrete base of a former heating plant in Hungary

Satellite network Starlink seen trotting through sky at night

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Prominent comedian, science communicator and physician Dara O'Briain took to Twitter to bemoan the man-made constellation, saying 'there goes the night sky' (pictured)

People unfamiliar with maverick billionaire Elon Musk's plans to send up thousands of satellites into space to beam down internet were befuddled by the sight. 

Suggestions trying to explain its appearance ranged from UFOs and aliens to Santa and his reindeer.  

The string of bright lights seen across Britain and Europe was actually a procession of Starlink satellites in orbit.