[null and void]

Imagine a pinwheel in space.

As it turns it ejects material outward, by the time it has made a full revolution the bit that it first ejected at that angle has travelled away from the center, and it adds a new bit in that direction.
Next revolution, there are two bits away from the center, one further than the other.
Next revolution, three bits evenly spaced and so on.

In the vacuum of space you get a perfect spiral.

To me it looks like the engine was a little off center, and the missile travelled a corkscrew path trying to correct, ending when the nozzle jammed hard over.

YMMV

[Jewbacca]

It’s even easier than that. The missle flies in cork screw of the same diameter each rotation.

The “pin wheel” effect is caused by the force perspective of the rocket flying away from the viewer.

(That is, the loops closer look bigger and the loops farther away look smaller.)

[The Comedian]

OK, I see what you mean.

That makes sense if the image is basically a time exposure capturing every event from launch to expiration of the booster(s) of all stages.

You're asserting, though, that this crazy-a$$ missle's trajectory, spinning like a top, actually made it into low earth orbit where gravity didn't deform the perfectly circular spiral swirl resulting when the nozzle locked hard to one side and expended the remainder of its fuel, right?

Seems a miracle that it made it into space, considering the deformation of flight path apparent from lift off onward. Also, there is no downward drift to the background spiral which one would expect if the expelling body was still in motion, either following a sub-orbital trajectory, or falling to earth.

Frowning takes 68 muscles.
Smiling takes 6.
Pulling this trigger takes 2.
I'm lazy.

[Daffynition]

GIZMODO had this explanation earlier today......

http://gizmodo.com/5422792/this-is-how-the-mysterious-giant-spiral-happened