Fireball tally from American Meteor Society

Meteor/Fireball crashes into White Mountains starting huge wildfire!
Oct 4, 2017

https://youtu.be/R6v2Ik-xK-k?rel=0
October 4, 2017: "FIRE IN THE SKY NEWS" / A meteor is being blamed as the possible cause of a out of control wildfire currently burning high in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. A local resident reported seeing something fall from the sky that night when the wildfire broke out. http://www.unionleader.com/public-saf...

Three meteor fireballs explode in the night sky over China
https://www.sott.net/article/363649-Three-meteor-fireballs-explode-in-the-night-sky-over-China
Tracy You Daily Mail Thu, 05 Oct 2017 11:16 UTC

https://youtu.be/tkPyPUdREX8?rel=0

AMS
https://www.amsmeteors.org/members/imo_view/event/2017/3539
Date 2017-10-02 21:25:00 PDT

https://youtu.be/za9yHN152Bo?rel=0
Location San Gabriel California US Geo Loc 34.0992° / -118.0819° Elevation 123.2140m

Hubble Sees First Time Icy Visitor Comet K2 (3:32)
Space Videos Published on Oct 2, 2017
https://youtu.be/Fd7Qno2hvk8
NASA's Hubble Space Telescope observed the farthest-discovered active inbound comet, Comet K2.
K2 came from the distant Oort Cloud and is visiting our inner solar system for the first (and only) time. Since we're seeing it so far away, past the orbit of Saturn, K2 is still in its early phase of activity, likely making it the most primitive comet anyone has ever seen.
 
South Carolina home hit by meteorite
Carla Field WYFF NBC Fri, 06 Oct 2017 10:23 UTC
https://www.sott.net/article/363791-South-Carolina-home-hit-by-meteorite
meteorite_1507306574.jpg

© Melanie Casselman

Bolide streaks over western France
Sott.net Sat, 07 Oct 2017 06:51 UTC
https://www.sott.net/article/363811-Bolide-streaks-over-western-France
bright_fireball_over_western_f.jpg

© Tioga Gulon, Boam Meteore, AstroChinon Bolide captured over western France on October 5, 2017.

The Brodie below and Las Vegas?

Las Vegas
34°05'57.5"N 118°04'54.8"W
Oct. 2 2017
Location San Gabriel US
Geo Loc 34.0993° / -118.0819° Elevation 123.2780m
https://www.amsmeteors.org/videos/?video_id=689

https://youtu.be/Y33Zd0V6no4?rel=0

Events in 2017 3607-2017 (Map)
Latitude 37° 44' 27.53'' N (37.740981°) 122° 25' 40.12'' W (-122.42781°)
https://www.amsmeteors.org/members/imo_view/event/2017/3607
AMS received 14 reports about a fireball seen over CA on Sunday, October 8th 2017 around 03:08 UT.

Massive wildfires in Napa and Sonoma counties burn structures, force evacuations
38°18′17″N 122°17′56″W Coordinates: 38°18′17″N 122°17′56″W
http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/2-big-wildfires-prompt-evacuations-in-Napa-County-12262945.php#photo-14312649
By Demian Bulwa Updated 2:30 am, Monday, October 9, 2017
http://ww2.hdnux.com/photos/66/46/23/14312649/23/920x920.jpg
A fire burns in Napa County late Sunday, Oct. 8, 2017.
Image 1 of 52


Meteor Strike Fireball From Space (Full Documentary)

https://youtu.be/28l9vm2Mvd4?rel=0

Draconid Meteor Shower May Burst Into Meteor Storm this Weekend
Oct 7, 2017
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X87bg9bv-BY
The Draconid Meteor Shower is a stunning natural phenomenon in which dozens of shooting stars illuminate the night sky.

It occurs every October when the Earth passes through a stream of debris from the Comet 21/P Giacobini-Zinner, a periodic comet that orbits the Sun once every 6.6 years. While usually a modest event with 10 to 20 meteors falling per hour, the Draconids have been known to flare up when conditions are right. In 1933 and 1946 observers reported thousands of meteors falling per hour, turning the shower into a meteor storm. There were also good shows as recently as 1998, 2005 and 2011.

The Draconid will be most visible between sunset and midnight when the constellation Draco – which the shower is named after - is at its highest point in the sky.
 
Man videos ‘meteorite strike’ as Cairns big bang theories abound (Video 00:38)
Chris Calcino, The Cairns Post October 9, 2017 10:05am
http://www.cairnspost.com.au/man-videos-meteorite-strike-as-cairns-big-bang-theories-abound/news-story/4d6c887861884c525eec2b9e6a8f7cec
THE city’s “big bang” mystery continues to deepen with residents split on whether it was caused by a meteorite, gas bottle explosion, electrical transformer failure or sonic boom.

Beginning with the latter theory, a single FA-18 Hornet was heard flying loudly over Cairns on Sunday night, with a Department of Defence spokesman confirming it landed at Cairns Airport while carrying out a training exercise from RAAF Base Townsville.

But no jets were operating late on Saturday night when a god-almighty “explosion” was heard across the city.

Who heard the ‘explosion’ last night? People all over #Cairns have reported hearing a whopping great big bang about 10.30pm but its source is still a bit of a mystery. Ergon has confirmed they had no issues in Cairns overnight and the police, firies and ambos are in the dark as well. Can you help us get to the bottom of it?

One Cairns man might be able to. John Romanov allegedly went out exploring for the source of the boom, and just so happened to come across a smoldering crater in some woods near Edge Hill State School. Romanov sent the Cairns Post a video of the “crater,” which appears to be filled with ashes without any sign of a meteorite whatsoever. Could this explain the mystery boom, or has this guy merely found someone’s illegal trash burning pit?
Source _http://mysteriousuniverse.org/2017/10/mysterious-explosions-are-being-heard-around-the-world/

AMS
25th anniversary of the Peekskill Meteorite
Oct 9 2017
https://www.amsmeteors.org/2017/10/25th-anniversary-of-the-peekskill-meteorite/
On October, 9, 1992, a very bright fireball flew over West Virginia, traveled some 700km (435 miles) north-east and ended-up its flight over the Peekskill northern Westchester County. This event is among the most historic meteorite events on record. Not only did at least 16 cameras caught the fireball on tape (mainly by high school football fans taping local games), but also a resulting 12kg (26 pounds) meteorite crashed through the back of a car.

The fireball, which traveled in an approximately northeasterly direction has been described as “huge” and “greenish” by numerous eyes witnesses from Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and Washington DC. The fireball attained an estimated peak visual magnitude of – 13 (comparable to the Full Moon) and traveled at the approximative velocity of 14.7km/s (9.1 miles per second – velocity at the beginning of the video records).

Twenty-five years after the fall of the Peekskill meteorite, the famous Chevy Malibu Classic is now in Paris to be part of an exhibition on meteorites at France’s national natural history museum — Muséum Nationale d’Histoire Naturelle.


https://youtu.be/AOU3r3Q4-eY?rel=0

AMS
https://www.amsmeteors.org/members/imo_view/event/2017/3618
https://www.amsmeteors.org/videos/?video_id=691

https://youtu.be/TRimBqDAvns?rel=0
Credit K. H
Date 2017-10-08 19:46:00 PDT This video is related to
AMS #3618-2017
Location Rio Vista US https://www.google.fr/maps/place/38.1732+-121.6544

AMS
Slow moving Fireball over Germany 2017-10-06 20:19:50 UTC
https://www.amsmeteors.org/videos/?video_id=693
Geo Loc 38.1732° / -121.6544° Elevation 1.4980m

Events in 2017 3587-2017
https://www.amsmeteors.org/members/imo_view/event/2017/3587
AMS received 13 reports about a fireball seen over Berlin, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Brandenburg, Overijssel and Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship on Friday, October 6th 2017 around 20:18 UT.
D. Sound 1 yes 8 no
C. Sound 9 no
Frag 4 yes 5 no

October 10 2017 AMS
We are currently investigating 50 reports about fireballs seen over SD, OR, CA, PA, MI, CT, VA, AZ, NV, KY, WA, AL, OH, Colorado, CO, New Jersey, Texas, Kentucky, Washington, RI, NM, FL, AR, Nebraska, New York, Maine and UT.
https://www.amsmeteors.org/members/imo_view/browse_reports?event=PENDING
We are also currently investigating 16 reports from Canada, Switzerland, China, Germany, France, United Kingdom and Poland
https://www.amsmeteors.org/members/imo_view/browse_reports?event=PENDING

Asteroid Named After County’s “Dark Skies” Traffic Chief
by Big Island Video News on Oct 10, 2017 at 6:39 pm
_http://www.bigislandvideonews.com/2017/10/10/asteroid-named-after-countys-dark-skies-traffic-chief/
An asteroid, 2.55 miles in diameter, has been named 9923 ronaldthiel

Ancient Asteroid Impact Exposed The Moon's Interior
Press Release - Source: Purdue University Posted October 10, 2017 11:56 PM
_http://spaceref.com/moon/ancient-asteroid-impact-exposed-the-moons-interior.html
 
AMS American Meteor Society
https://www.amsmeteors.org/

Date 2017-10-16 01:05:00 PDT
Events in 2017 3745-2017
https://www.amsmeteors.org/members/imo_view/event/2017/3745
AMS received 10 reports about a fireball seen over CA on Monday, October 16th 2017 around 08:04 UT.
D. Sound 6 no
C. Sound 1 yes 7 no
Frag 1 yes 7 no
38626_1954_mid.png

Map: 34.0992 -118.0819
https://www.google.fr/maps/place/34%C2%B005'57.1%22N+118%C2%B004'54.8%22W/@34.0992,-119.2025055,8z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x0:0x0!8m2!3d34.0992!4d-118.0819

https://youtu.be/LMhOf-VpPZY?rel=0

October 16th 2017
Events in 2017 3770-2017
https://www.amsmeteors.org/members/imo_view/event/2017/3770
AMS received 3 reports about a fireball seen over CA on Monday, October 16th 2017 around 06:54 UT.
Published on Oct 17, 2017
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YJ0qd2Ox03k
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5gIsU9dUFY
This video has been uploaded on the American Meteor Society Website. AMS Event: 3770-2017, Report (3770c-2017) Credit:O. Nas

Sunday, October 15th 2017
Events in 2017 3784-2017
https://www.amsmeteors.org/members/imo_view/event/2017/3784
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEFTzWT6VVY
AMS received 2 reports about a fireball seen over CA on Sunday, October 15th 2017 around 02:48 UT.
D. Sound 1 no
C. Sound 1 no
Frag 1 yes

Bright Meteor/Fireball Lights Up Night Sky Over OH / PA / KY / GA / FL
Published on Oct 16, 2017
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S2-4AttwB28
A bright meteor was spotted on October 15 streaking through the night sky over 5 US States around 03 44 EDT. The meteor lit up the skies as it burned up in the atmosphere.

AMS
We are currently investigating 35 reports about fireballs seen over CT, FL, MA, NH, ME, CA, NY, NJ, WI, PA, VA, TX, DC, MD, IN, AZ, AL and MO.
https://www.amsmeteors.org/members/imo_view/browse_reports?event=PENDING
We are also currently investigating 5 reports from Canada, Chile, Germany and Algeria.
https://www.amsmeteors.org/members/imo_view/browse_reports?event=PENDING
 
horse said:
11-3-2017 Meteor spotted on the Fukushima camera looking to the north. Seven second video.


https://vimeo.com/241226972

Nice catch horse! The big blue marble is witnessing a huge spike of Fireball's and Meteors. Looks like November wont disappoint as well.

Bright flash, mysterious boom caught on home surveillance camera in New Jersey (Video with sound)
Alexis Tarrazi Patch Thu, 02 Nov 2017 18:56 UTC
https://www.sott.net/article/366492-Bright-flash-mysterious-boom-caught-on-home-surveillance-camera-in-New-Jersey

San Diego rocked by a loud boom and shaking; USGS reports it was not an earthquake
RT Thu, 02 Nov 2017 13:39 UTC
https://www.sott.net/article/366413-San-Diego-rocked-by-a-loud-boom-and-shaking-USGS-reports-it-was-not-an-earthquake

jervisCjacobs Published on Oct 30, 2017

https://youtu.be/MqyZC9CO_zM?rel=0
Clearly seen bright Meteor hitting the atmosphere video in las vegas caught on dash cam

Earth-grazing meteor fireball with radio reflections caught over New Mexico
Vincent Perlerin American Meteor Society Mon, 30 Oct 2017 16:17 UTC
https://www.sott.net/article/366178-Earth-grazing-meteor-fireball-with-radio-reflections-caught-over-New-Mexico
earthgazer.jpg


The Man Who Draws Meteors Nov 2 2017
https://www.amsmeteors.org/2017/11/the-man-who-draws-meteors/
Snip:
On October, 30th, his trained keen eye allowed him to exactly remember the 4 second fireball that flew in front of him. Right after the event, Deconinck took his pencils and decided to water color the event.

An avid drawer since childhood, Deconinck knew exactly where the fireball occurred in the sky and was able to place all the stars present in the scenery.

In the foreground, we can see his personal observatory illuminated only by red LEDs. From his position, the fireball went from the variable star chi Cygni in the constellation Cygnus to the Vega (α Lyrae), the brightest star in the constellation of Lyra.

fireballd.jpg

This is not the first time Deconinck has drawn meteors. We can see many examples of his artwork on this personal website: astro.aquarellia.com.

The French fireball was also witnessed by Alexandre Astier, a famous French writer, director, editor, scriptwriter, humorist, actor and composer. Astier
4047-map.jpg

AMS Nov. 3 2017
Location Cirencester GB Geo Loc 51.7252° / -1.9442° Elevation 136.1675m
https://www.amsmeteors.org/videos/?video_id=738
AMS #4105-2017

https://youtu.be/vR8uS0qdXRU?rel=0 Meteor caught on dash cam over Cirencester Gloucestershire 02 November 2017 @ 06:14 A.M.

AMS
Events in 2017 4111-2017
https://www.amsmeteors.org/members/imo_view/event/2017/4111
AMS received 18 reports about a fireball seen over VT, NJ, MA, NY, CT and PA on Friday, November 3rd 2017 around 22:32 UT.

Liked this dudes response :cool2:

Unlikely Stars: Russian dashcam vids become internet sensations
Aug 11, 2013

https://youtu.be/OIbj0pFYT4o?rel=0
 
Yet another bolide exploded last night, this time over Finland. It is the latest of several meteor fireball events this week including France, Germany, Spain, United States, and Argentina. I can't recall so many of these events occurring within a few days like this.

According to local media, there were also reports of 'heavy bangs' in an area of ​​a few hundred kilometers radius. Other recent reports of 'mysterious booms' include those in Alabama, Florida, San Diego, New Jersey and British Columbia, which could be attributed to exploding space rock fragments.

https://www.sott.net/article/368027-Incoming-Bright-bolide-explodes-over-northern-Finland-VIDEOS

The aforementioned meteor fireball that flew over Germany on Nov 14th has been confirmed as the most reported fireball event from Europe , with 1962 reports so far, since the AMS and the IMO launched the international version of the AMS fireball form.

Could these recent events be part of the Taurid meteor shower which peaked this past Saturday? According to the American Meteor Society (AMS) website:

Associated with the comet Encke, the Taurids are actually two separate showers, with a Southern and a Northern component. Both branches of the Taurids are most notable for colorful fireballs and are often responsible for an increased number of fireball reports from September through November.

The first analysis conducted by former IMO president Dr. Juergen Rendtel of the Leibniz-Institut für Astrophysik Potsdam from the raw data shows that the events that occurred over Arizona and France cannot be linked to the Taurids: the Arizona event was moving from North-West to South-East while the French event was moving from North-East to South-West.

However, the events over Germany and Ohio fit the Taurids direction (East->West) and the low inclination angle at the time of the sightings! Note that the East-West direction is related to the Taurids only because the fireball occurred in the local evening. Later in the night or towards the morning the direction is different, of course.

https://www.amsmeteors.org/2017/11/four-major-fireballs-within-ten-hours/

A couple of months ago we had Comet K2 - farthest active inbound comet ever seen.

https://www.sott.net/article/363189-Comet-K2-farthest-active-inbound-comet-ever-seen

It sure looks like 'something wicked this way comes'!
 
Anam Cara said:
Yet another bolide exploded last night, this time over Finland. It is the latest of several meteor fireball events this week including France, Germany, Spain, United States, and Argentina. I can't recall so many of these events occurring within a few days like this.
It sure looks like 'something wicked this way comes'!

Nov 16, 2017

https://youtu.be/de12EvbaUf0?rel=0

AMS
Meteor Activity Outlook for November 18-24, 2017
Nov 16 2017
https://www.amsmeteors.org/2017/11/meteor-activity-outlook-for-november-18-24-2017/
featured-3.jpg


These sources of meteoric activity are expected to be active this week.
The Northern Taurids (NTA)
The omicron Eridanids (OER)
The Southern Taurids (STA)
The November Orionids (NOO)
The theta Aurigids (THA)
The alpha Monocerotids (AMO)
The Orionids (ORI)
The Leonids (LEO)
 
https://www.rt.com/news/410167-fireball-captured-iss/ said:
Fireball hurtling past Earth caught on camera (VIDEO)

Astronauts at the International Space Station captured a rare moment when a fireball whizzed to Earth.
The blink-and-you’ll-miss-it footage was shared by astronaut Paolo Nespoli. It was captured on November 5 as part of a series of night-time photographs taken as the Space Station was flying over the southern Atlantic Ocean towards Kazakhstan. The images were put together in a time-lapse video with a 1-second interval.

A fireball is “basically a very bright meteoroid – a small bit of natural ‘space rock’ – entering Earth’s atmosphere and burning brighter than the background stars,” Rudiger Jehn of the European Space Station’s Space Situational Awareness Programme said.

The meteoroid can be seen between the 0:07 and 0:08 second mark, in the upper right section of the frame.

“Indeed it looks like a bright meteor, or fireball,” Detlef Koschny, of the ESA’s Space Situational Awareness Programme explained.“When I stretch the scale then I can see that the object was below the airglow – assuming it was close to the Earth limb – see the brightness-adjusted screenshot below.”

Koschny said that the fireball can be seen “illuminating the clouds from above,” which means it was close to Earth.

“This particular meteoroid was moving much faster than typical, with an estimated speed of around 40 km/s.” Jehn said.

The video also captures a number of lightning storms, which are a lot easier to spot than the fireball.


https://youtu.be/wNixNC_mAk8

edit
--already there https://www.sott.net/article/368130-Fireball-hurtling-past-Earth-captured-on-camera-by-International-Space-Station
 
Geminid Meteor Shower Over New York City / 2:41

https://youtu.be/yza9gHXMo3w?rel=0
StormChasingVideo Published on Dec 13, 2017
Geminid Meteors shoot over New York City. Birds, back lit by starry skies and illuminated by city lights migrate south over Queens, NY as arctic air settles over the northeast US.
And something we were not expecting that was picked up by the camera was a huge flock of birds at least a thousand feet or more in the area at night migrating south a head of the storm.

AMS
https://www.amsmeteors.org/members/imo_view/browse_reports
We are currently investigating 138 reports about fireballs seen over KS, CA, TX, AZ, GA, CO, OK, MO, KY, OH, NY, SD, PA, UT, WA, AL, NJ, DE, NM, AR, TN, MA, VA, CT, FL, NE, MI, IL, MD, OR, MS, LA, HI and WI.

We are also currently investigating 61 reports from Austria, Belgium, Canada, Switzerland, Germany, Spain, France, United Kingdom, Grenada, India and Netherlands.

Dec 10, 2017 Bolide over south Tulsa, OK on the evening of 12/9/17 around 9:50 PM local time
https://www.amsmeteors.org/videos/?video_id=879

https://youtu.be/1L4Tn3iofzc?rel=0

Fire in the Sky
Sott.net
https://www.sott.net/category/17-Fire-in-the-Sky
 
DETROIT — A flash that lit up the sky and a loud “boom” noise recorded Tuesday evening by southeast Michigan residents may have been caused by a meteor, officials say.

Flashing light, loud ‘boom’ over Michigan may have been a meteor (Videos) January 17, 2018
http://wqad.com/2018/01/17/flashing-light-loud-boom-over-michigan-may-have-been-a-meteor/

Several residents reported the incident from Ann Arbor to Detroit, with some saying they felt the ground shake, according to WJBT.

Dispatch centers in West Michigan say they also received reports of a flash of light in the sky. Reports were made in Barry, Ionia and Ottawa counties.

The National Weather Service tweeted that there was no thunder or lightning in the area, and that it was likely caused by a meteor. They are continuing to monitor feeds from astronomical agencies for confirmation Tuesday night. This is a developing story.


Following multiple reports of a flash in the sky, accompanied by the sound of thunder near Detroit, Michigan, the US National Weather Service confirmed that the phenomena were not weather-related.

A Bolt From the Blue: WATCH 'Meteoroid' Light up Sky Over Detroit
https://sputniknews.com/viral/201801171060811492-us-detroit-nasa-meteoroid/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SscgyGL9kjM (0:17 min.)

NASA said that the bright light and thunderous noises which were reported were due to a meteoroid entering the Earth's atmosphere on Tuesday night.

Bill Cooke of NASA's meteoroid environment office in Alabama said that this "huge event" was "definitely a meteoroid."

Local media outlets cited meteorologist Cory Behnke of the weather service in White Lake Township as saying that the first report on "lightning with thunder" from greater Detroit came at 8:15 P.M. local time.

"We checked our observational data here, and I can tell you we've not had any lightning," Behnke said, adding that it was most likely a meteoroid.
 
angelburst29 said:
Flashing light, loud ‘boom’ over Michigan may have been a meteor (Videos) January 17, 2018
http://wqad.com/2018/01/17/flashing-light-loud-boom-over-michigan-may-have-been-a-meteor/

A Bolt From the Blue: WATCH 'Meteoroid' Light up Sky Over Detroit
https://sputniknews.com/viral/201801171060811492-us-detroit-nasa-meteoroid/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SscgyGL9kjM (0:17 min.)

Meteorite hunters who flocked to Detroit from across the U.S. after a meteor exploded are finding the fragments.

Meteorite hunters find first fragments of Michigan meteor days after the exploding space rock sent a fireball tearing through the night sky (Video)
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-5290227/Meteorite-hunters-fragments-Michigan-meteor.html

The 6-foot-wide meteor broke apart Tuesday about 20 miles over Earth, NASA scientists said. Most of the fragments landed in Hamburg Township.

The first fragments were located Thursday by professional hunters Larry Atkins and Robert Ward of Arizona, according to the American Meteor Society.

Atkins owns Cosmic Connection Meteorites, while Ward operates Robert Ward Meteorites.

'It's a really spectacular specimen,' Ward said while holding one of the meteorites.

'Two days ago, this was hundreds of thousands of miles past the moon, and now I'm standing here holding it in my hand.

'It's been a real good day.'

Ward said he used seismic data, Doppler radar and witness information to narrow down where to search.

Meteorite hunters seek permission from landowners before searching on their property, Ward said.

Ward estimates he's collected about 600 meteorites from around the world over the years.

Longway Planetarium astronomers have also located three meteorites that'll be displayed Friday.
 
A driver in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg in the Ural Mountains has managed to capture the fall of what researchers claimed was an extremely fast meteor, according to local media reports.

Mysterious Celestial Ball of Fire Detected in Russia's Urals Skies (VIDEO) 04.03.2018
https://sputniknews.com/russia/201803041062214749-russia-yekaterinburg-video-meteor/

Vladilen Sanakoyev of the Ural Federal University's educational observatory in Yekaterinburg has given his thoughts on the video with what looked like a massive falling ball of fire, local media outlets have reported.

According to him, a blue flash in the footage indicates that the celestial body was flying at a high speed when a car's dashboard camera captured the moment of the alleged meteor falling from the skies in the Russian Urals city.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GsaDhfmLFDI (0:08 min.)

"The crushing [of the celestial body] is also visible. When the brightness exceeds the level of Venus's luminescence, such celestial bodies are referred to bolides [fast meteors], but in this case the flare was comparable to the full Moon, so we can talk about emergence of a super bolide," Sanakoyev said.

He stressed that such a phenomenon is "quite rare" and that it can take place in the same area just "once a year".

Yekaterinburg is located not far from the Russian Urals city of Chelyabinsk, where a 20-meter meteor exploded in the skies in 2013.
 
SEATTLE -- The fireball hundreds of people reported over the Washington coast Wednesday night was a meteor entering our atmosphere, NASA scientists told Q13 News.

NASA says ‘fireball’ that shook Washington coast about the size of minivan (Video) March 8, 2018
http://q13fox.com/2018/03/08/nasa-says-fireball-that-shook-washington-coast-about-the-size-of-minivan/

Not just a meteor. A fireball. A big fireball.

Around 7:10 p.m., Washingtonians from Aberdeen to Port Orchard reported a bright light in the sky, a boom and some shaking. Grays Harbor Emergency Management followed the incident, but were not immediately sure what it was.

"The WA State Duty Officer contacted the FAA and the Western Air Defense Sector and was told they had no problems," Grays Harbor Emergency Management wrote. "There was NO earthquake. There are no reports of explosions or crashes on the ground. We will continue our investigation of the incident and will forward any information we receive."

Scientists quickly solved the mystery Thursday morning. It was a bolide, said Dr. Marc Fries, with the NASA Johnson Space Center.

Basically, a bolide is a fancy word for a really large meteor.

"Really large meteors are called fireballs," Fries said. "Really large fireballs are called bolides. This was a bolide."

Fries said the meteor appeared to travel northwest over Washington and landed about 14 miles off the coast. Scientists tracked the bolide with seismographs, weather satellites and other NASA equipment; some registering readings as far away as Manitoba, Canada.

This was one of the largest bolides produced in the past 20 years, Fries said. It came into the atmosphere as one rock, roughly the size of a minivan. Made up of rock and ice, it quickly broke down into smaller pieces, with the largest pieces about brick-sized hitting the ocean.

"Most of the mass is gone as it enters the atmosphere," Fries said. "What survived was about 1 percent of what entered."

Many reported a big boom after the stream of light Tuesday, Fries said. At 14 kilometers a second, the bolide was fast enough to cause a sonic boom that rattled windows and shook homes.

A meteorite falls somewhere on Earth about once every day, Fries said, with most being much smaller than what splashed into the Pacific Wednesday night. From those, pieces from only about 12 meteorites are found each year.

Too bad the bolide over Washington ended in the ocean, Fries said. Bolides this big are rare, and it would have been great to study the rock that landed. Most meteors are around 4.5 billion years old and offer a look at the cosmic past.

"It gives us not just a window into the past but an actual piece of the solar system's past," Fries said.

It's not too rare to see a fireball. But for those who saw the big boom of light Tuesday night, it was a special experience.

"I've seen a few fireballs," Fries said. "But never one large enough to shake the ground."


MONTESANO, Wash. -- Numerous people along the Washington coast and as far inland as Montesano on Wednesday night reported a loud boom and a flash in the sky, Grays Harbor Emergency Management said.

Loud boom, bright flash in sky reported over Western Washington (Videos) March 8, 2018
http://q13fox.com/2018/03/07/loud-boom-flash-in-sky-reported-over-grays-harbor-county-and-olympics/?utm_source=related_1

Some report their home shaking," the agency said.

"Grays Harbor Emergency Management has contacted the National Weather Service in Seattle about our incident and was told we were not having a severe weather event at the time of the reported ground shaking, loud boom and flash of light in the sky," the agency said.

"The WA State Duty Officer contacted the FAA and the Western Air Defense Sector and was told they had no problems. There was NO earthquake. There are no reports of explosions or crashes on the ground. We will continue our investigation of the incident and will forward any information we receive."

Charles Wallace, deputy director of Grays Harbor Emergency Management, said, Charles Wallace, deputy director of Grays Harbor Emergency Management, said, Wallace said it was possibly "a meteor that came over. No real explanation."

Q13 News Chief Meteorologist Walter Kelley said late Wednesday he believed it was a bolide, which is an extremely bright meteor, especially one that explodes in the atmosphere. In astronomy, it refers to a fireball about as bright as the full moon, and it is generally considered a synonym of a fireball.

Meteorologist Dana Felton with the National Weather Service told Q13 News on Thursday he also believed it was a bolide.

Security video footage of the flash from Fox Island: (flash)

A Facebook message to the Grays Harbor Emergency Management page wrote, "We are 17.5 miles out on the ocean commercial fishing and we seen the flash. The whole sky light up followed by a loud boom."
 
Viewing the Lyrid Meteor Shower in 2018
Outbursts of the Lyrids have occurred in intervals of about 60 years with the years 1803, 1862, 1922, and 1982 producing notable displays. The next strong outburst should occur near 2042. :whlchair:

Every year the Earth passes through the particles of this comet from April 14-30. Particle density in space is very sparse away from the April 22nd maximum therefore are low away from this date.

On the night of April 21/22 the Earth passes closest to the core of the comet’s orbit and rates climb to 15-20 Lyrids per hour, depending on your location. This year the moon will be at it’s first quarter phase meaning that it will be half-illuminated and will set near 02:00 local daylight savings time as seen from mid-northern latitudes. Therefore it would be best to wait until the moon has set before commencing observations as moonlight will obscure fainter meteors.

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Meteor showers from space
Perseids meteor shower
This shower peaks in mid-August, when Earth intersects the dust cloud left by comet Swift-Tuttle. Learn more.

lyrids2018.jpg


Published on Apr 11, 2018
Spring has arrived in the Northern Hemisphere
, which means that birds are chirping, flowers are blooming — and fireballs are lighting up the sky, NASA says. For some mysterious reason, the number of fireballs — dramatic meteors that blaze brighter than any planet when they burn up in Earth's atmosphere — peaks at this time of year.

SPRINGTIME FIREBALL MYSTERY: The inner solar system is littered with dusty, gravelly debris from decaying comets and shattered asteroids. Every night Earth scoops up tons--literally tons--of this material, resulting in a slow drizzle of bright fireballs. Astronomers call them "sporadics." If you stay outside all night long, you might see as many as a dozen if the weather is clear.

Now for the mystery: Sporadic fireballs appear 10% to 30% more often during northern spring compared to other times of year--and no one knows why. "We've been aware of this phenomenon for more than 30 years," says Bill Cooke of NASA's Meteoroid Environment Office. "It's not only fireballs that are affected. Meteorite falls--space rocks that actually hit the ground--are more common in spring as well." Perhaps there is a diffuse swarm of meteoroids scattered in the April-May arc of Earth's orbit, giving rise to the extra fireballs. If so, its origin is unknown. One thing is certain: Spring is fireball season, and a great time to catch unexpected meteors in photos of other things. Enjoy the show.
 
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