The Press Stories
A magnificent meteorite was spotted in the northwest of the United States, ascending through the sky as it did. The meteorite struck the Earth’s atmosphere on October 26, and dozens of people in Canada and the United States witnessed the event. Witnesses were amazed to see, and some said it was the largest and brightest fireball ever seen.
As the small space rock falls towards our planet, the images of the scene show a bright light in the night sky.
Americans and Canadians gathered at the International Meteorological Organization (IMO) to report what they saw.
Claire said: “It’s fascinating to me. I’ve seen so many shooting stars in my life. It was so big / close.”
Ray told IMO: “It was so awesome, it looks like the brightest / longest ‘shooting star’ I have ever seen.”
Sue described her experience: “I was driving north across the Astoria-McLare Bridge when I saw this from OR to WA.
“At first my mind went to the ‘helicopter’ … but it was going very fast and at a steep angle.
“The light blue was flatter and thinner than the circle, may have been a little though not really a clear tail.
“I said, ‘Aw! What is that !?’ For my cat. “
Read more: Fireball Video: The Biggest Meteor Strikes Over America
The IMO said: “Fireballs are meteors that appear brighter than normal.
Due to the speed at which they hit the Earth’s atmosphere, they are capable of generating bright flashes as fragments of more than a millimeter pass through the skies above.
“These bright meteorites are what we call fireballs, and they often cause fear and awe to those who see them.”
The most famous fireball in modern history came in 2013 when a meteor struck Chelyabinsk.
The eruption, caused by a 20-meter meteorite, was so powerful that it smashed windows across the city and injured more than 1,000 people.
