It was a night when many thought the great question on alien life had finally been answered. Big glowing ball with four extending tails whizzed about the sky over the Russian Urals. The sight attracked mass attention when the first messages and spectacular pictures quickly appeared in blogs. But it turns out 'life from Mars' was actually a Meridian military communications satellite being blasted off into orbit. It's the fourth of its type launched by Russia to replace the ageing Molniya system. The country has more than 100 satellites hurtling around the earth.