So what's going on here? It's likely a part of a meteor shower going on that has a reputation for putting on quite a show around Halloween every year. Every year in late October and early November, the earth passes through the dust of a comet named Comet Encke. One astronomy website described the shower this way: "Although a modest shower, the Taurids can surprise you with a flamboyant fireball or two!" A meteorologist with the National Weather Service told the San Gabriel Valley Tribune that's likely what us Southern Californians saw tonight.
Comment: Regardless of whether it was a stray meteor from the Taurids meteor shower or not, something is afoot out there. Fireball sightings are becoming the norm instead of the odd occurrence all around the BBM. Comets and The Horns of Moses
It doesn't take much dust to put on a show. NASA describes it this way: "Tiny grains hit our atmosphere at 65,000 mph. At that speed, even a tiny smidgen of dust makes a vivid streak of light--a meteor--when it disintegrates. Because these meteors shoot out of the constellation Taurus, they're called Taurids."
I happened to catch a glimpse of whatever it was that streaked through the sky this evening while in Pasadena. It happened in the Northwest sky. Like a lot of people who reported seeing it, I thought I was catching the tail end of an oddly-timed fireworks display. Maybe something at the Rose Bowl or some sort of illegal fireworks? But the light was vivid enough that it didn't make sense that I couldn't make out any sort of noise above the din of the nearby Del Mar Station. The light was heading northward as it plunged. It looked more like a ball than a streak, which is just one of many reasons this photo did not pass the sniff test.
If you captured photos or video of the fireball, send it our way.
Reader Comments
to our Newsletter