Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it’s Elon Musk’s satellite system.

The line of bright lights that were spotted over Swindon on Sunday night had several residents questioning if they needed new glasses.

Elon Musk’s Starlink system could be seen from across the town on Sunday, October 22, with more than 20 white spots lined up in the sky.

Starlink is a chain of about 5,000 satellites launched by Mr Musk's company SpaceX, which will form part of a massive network of 12,000 satellites.

The controversial technology is being used as part of a UK government trial to provide rural homes and isolated areas with better internet service, and it works by beaming a broadband signal down to earth.

On a clear night, the satellites are so bright that they can be seen without binoculars or a telescope, and appear as small, fast-moving bright lights.

It’s not the first time that these satellites have been spotted, but the line of lights still caused confusion for many Swindon residents, who rushed out to photograph the satellites.

“[Not] a UFO then,” laughed Louise Crook on Facebook.

“We saw this over Redhouse last night. Great to see,” said Nicky Edwards.

Commenting on the Starlink satellites earlier this year, then-Culture Secretary Michelle Donelan said: “High-speed broadband beamed to earth from space could be the answer to the connectivity issues suffered by people in premises stuck in the digital slow lane."