Sochi bolide
© YouTube/RT (screen capture)
A sparkling bolide that lit up the sky over Russia's Sochi on Friday, Alexander Ivanov, head of the Kuban University laboratory of astrophysics, told RIA Novosti in an interview.

Internet users speculated over violent clapping sounds supposedly accompanying the fireball. Some cited a hissing sound as an unidentified object flew past the location; others remarked they saw merely a flash of light.

On December 4-17 the Geminid meteor shower was expected to approach Earth, peaking on December 13-15, Ivanov was cited as saying.
"There were some flashes of light in the night sky, as a standard bolide, the size of a soccer ball, entered the atmosphere. Part of it was caught on our cameras. Armavir and Sochi also detailed their observations. This brings us to the conclusion that the object had burnt down about 20 kilometers above Earth."
A video of the phenomena has been uploaded here.


Mysterious booms are increasing dramatically all over the planet, which may be indicative of space rock fragments exploding in the atmosphere. Meteorites have been recorded recently over Canada, South Africa and the US.

It is well worth remembering what can come out of the sky, without any warning at all, like Russia's Chelyabinsk meteor fireball on February 15, 2013.


Even NASA's own space data supports citizens' recent observations, namely the inconvenient fact that meteor fireballs are increasing dramatically.