Residents of Europe were stunned to see a powerful fireball exploding over the continent, with witnesses from several countries. The International Meteor Organisation (IMO) received more than 120 witness reports from countries including the UK, France, Germany, The Netherlands and even as far as Italy.
Due to the trajectory of the meteor, some believed they were witnessing the International Space Station (ISS) passing overhead.
David from the UK told the IMO: “I thought at first that it was the ISS but then realised that it was moving too fast and that it was green.”
Shannon, also from the UK, said: “It was awesome whatever it was!”
Asteroids and meteors produce a bright explosion of fire when they hit the atmosphere as it is the first time the space rock has ever met resistance.
Air seeps into the pores and cracks of the rock, pushing it apart and causing it to explode.
The IMO said: “Fireballs are meteors that appear brighter than normal.
“Due to the velocity at which they strike the Earth’s atmosphere, fragments larger than one millimetre have the capability to produce a bright flash as they streak through the heavens above.
“These bright meteors are what we call fireballs and they often strike fear and awe for those who witness them.”
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NASA fears the asteroid, which is 500 metres in length and has the potential to wipe out a country on Earth, could hit our planet within the next 120 years, with the next close flyby in 2135.
The mission will give vital information on how to deflect asteroids from their collision course with Earth.
But NASA reiterates while there is a very small chance Earth could be impacted, “over millions of years, of all of the planets, Bennu is most likely to hit Venus.”