A fireball that crossed the sky Thursday night was caught on The York Water Company's surveillance camera.

It was the same camera at the company's pumping station in Spring Garden Township that captured a meteor in the sky last year, said Jeffrey Hines, president and CEO of the water company.

However, the latest fireball appeared to be at a slightly different angle, he said. It showed up in the footage around 9:53 p.m.

Brian Kirby, a York City Police officer, spotted the meteor while on duty Thursday evening.

"It was pretty bright. You couldn't really miss it," he said. "It had a pretty long tail. . . . Definitely not your average shooting star."



The meteor traveled from east to west in the sky, Kirby said.

Meteorite hunter Mike Antonelli of the Pittsburgh area said it's interesting the two sightings are about a year apart and might have followed a similar trajectory.

The one that crossed the sky July 6, 2009, created a sonic boom. Antonelli and other meteorite hunters -- including Steve Arnold of the Science Channel show "Meteorite Men" -- visited York County to search for clues as to where the remnants may have fallen.

It is believed the strewn field of that meteorite is in Lancaster County. That was based on the water company's video and a man's photograph of the fireball.

Antonelli said he still has been looking for that one.

"I've just about thrown in the towel," he said.

The latest fireball was spotted by numerous people in Lancaster County.

John O'Donnell of Manheim told the Intelligencer Journal that he was in his front yard looking north when he saw it.

"It was a big flash of blue light, and it flashed three or four times before this bright silver ball floated down to the ground," he said. "It seemed like it was right over top of us, but a little to the north."

He also said he heard it hit the ground.

Meteorite hunters use video to help them figure out in which direction the meteor was heading. Antonelli said he might head to Manheim borough to start a search.