A meteor struck the atmosphere over the northeast US which some have described as the most amazing thing they had “ever” witnessed. The fireball was seen in six different states, including Indiana, Illinois and Iowa, as well as the Canadian city of Toronto, showing just how bright the meteor was.
Cameras picked up on the phenomenon, showing a huge blue stream beaming across the night’s sky.
Tens of people flocked to the International Meteor Organisation (IMO) to report the sighting, with some worried a nuclear strike was happening.
Kim told the IMO: “The most amazing thing I have ever seen.”
Adam said: “It was so fast, I honestly waited in middle of the road for a explosion to come. I thought for a second it was a nuclear strike!”
Meezan added: “I did not believe what I saw, it felt like fourth of July firework for a fraction of a second. Truly marvellous.”
Miles stated: “It was so cool! Was walking out my back door and saw the flash.
“Though it was a firework but it was too high and too vivid. No sound either.”
Fireballs are a largely harmless phenomenon which occur when a space rock, usually around a meteor in size hits the atmosphere.
These rocks have been gliding around space without air resistance, so as soon as they encounter the atmosphere, air seeps into its pores, pushing it apart and causing a bright explosion.
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.”
Sometimes, however, a large rock makes its way to Earth – as is evident from the Chelyabinsk meteor strike.
A 20-metre space rock hit Earth’s atmosphere above the Russian city of Chelyabinsk in 2013, which caused such an explosion it smashed windows across the city and injured more than 1,000 people.