AN EXPLOSION AT a power plant resulted in the sky over the New York skyline turning bright blue-green overnight. 

The transformer explosion was determined to be a non-suspicious equipment malfunction, according to NYPD. However, the explanation did not satisfy some, with many taking to social media speculating of an alien invasion. 

The strange sight was caused by an explosion at the Con Edison power plant in Queens, with the New York Police Department officially confirming on Twitter that the cause of the remarkable sight was the explosion and there was “no evidence of extraterrestrial activity”.

The explosion resulted in a number of power outages, which had a knock on effect on flights, with La Guardia Airport having a number of delays. 

Many New Yorkers were stunned when the sky over parts of Queens started to glow a bright neon blue shortly after 9pm on Thursday night.

Scores posted footage of the glowing skyline to social media, saying the sky was “bright as day”. Footage of the scene shows the sky flickering a bright blue-green for several minutes.

“The lights you have seen throughout the city appear to have been from a transformer explosion at a Con Ed facility in Queens,” the New York Police Department tweeted.

Con Edison, the power company, tweeted that:

There was a brief electrical fire at our substation in Astoria which involved some electrical transformers and caused a transmission dip in the area. We’re currently investigating the cause of the incident.

 The Mayor of New York Bill de Blasio also confirmed on Twitter that there is no current fire and there are no injuries reported. 

 - © AFP 2018