A fireball is defined as a meteor that is brighter than the planet Venus and usually has a bright trailing tail.
The reason for the increase in fireball activity is "still unknown," NASA says, but one thought is simply that more space debris litters the Earth's orbit near the spring equinox, which is March 20.
Comment: Sure, more space debris is littering Earth's orbit near the spring equinox now - as in, this is a new phenomenon!
According to the AMS, 2016 has seen an increase in the number of reported fireballs. Since Jan. 1, 910 fireballs have been reported through its online report program, compared to 839 reports received during the same time last year.
On March 5, 99 fireball reports were made in central to northern Florida. Two people in Davie reported spotting a fireball with one noting that "it fell out of a cloud" making the angle of entrance hard to determine.
This fireball was caught over Missouri on March 4:
Comment: Whoever at NASA made these statements clearly hasn't checked their own data. February and March are typically among the lowest months for fireball numbers.
It's looking like the overall trend will be way up this year, with much more to come in the typically more active second-half of the year.
For spectacular footage of just some of the hundreds of meteor fireballs that lit up the night sky the world over last month, check out our latest instalment of the SOTT Earth Changes Summary video:
SOTT Earth Changes Summary - February 2016: Extreme Weather, Planetary Upheaval, Meteor Fireballs
See also:
NASA space data supports citizens' observations: Meteor fireballs are increasing dramatically