© YouTube/American Meteor Society (screen capture)
Fireballs
© DFN, Curtin University
The fireball was captured by the Desert Fireball Network's Katanning camera system.
The fireball was captured by the Desert Fireball Network's Katanning camera system.
Dr Hadrien Devillepoix said the fireball — reported at 8:09pm local time, east of the Perth metropolitan area — would have been visible up to 500 kilometres from Perth in Geraldton, Kalgoorlie, and Albany.
The exact location cannot be determined because remnant cloud hindered DFN's cameras from being able to triangulate the asteroid.
"Not many people actually saw the fireball directly," Dr Devillepoix said.
"We got it on one camera — all the way down in Katanning in the Wheatbelt."
On October 28, residents of Michigan, Wisconsin and Illinois were treated to a "spectacular" fireball as the Sun was rising. So powerful was the fireball that people were able to see it, despite daylight beginning to take place.
Tens of people reported the phenomenon to the International Meteor Organisation (IMO), describing their experience of the small space rock hitting Earth's atmosphere.
Many described the trail of the fireball taking on a blue colour, likely because of certain gasses packed into the atmosphere.
Jean said: "Saw it just after sunrise as the sky was brightening up. It was very bright and spectacular."
The 4:06 #fireball as seen by Norman Lockyer Observatory today - thanks to @nlospam for the video. Tomorrow #FRIPON runs the numbers to see whether a #meteorite landed. @UKMeteorNetwork #spacerocks pic.twitter.com/VtVLDSgmXv
— SCAMP (@SCAMP_Meteors) October 25, 2020
The meteor fireball was recorded by the geostationary satellite GOES-16 and by a live weather camera.
A resident of Redemption recorded the trail of smoke left in the sky by the meteor.
© Field Museum
The meteorite fragment that fell on Strawberry Lake which contains pristine extraterrestrial organic compounds.
The meteorite fragment that fell on Strawberry Lake which contains pristine extraterrestrial organic compounds.
"This meteorite is special because it fell onto a frozen lake and was recovered quickly. It was very pristine. We could see the minerals weren't much altered and later found that it contained a rich inventory of extraterrestrial organic compounds," says Philipp Heck, a curator at the Field Museum, associate professor at the University of Chicago, and lead author of the new paper. "These kinds of organic compounds were likely delivered to the early Earth by meteorites and might have contributed to the ingredients of life."
© GETTY / VERA R
Western America spots 'most amazing' meteor brighter than the Moon
Western America spots 'most amazing' meteor brighter than the Moon
People of California, Oregon and Washington spotted what some are calling the "most amazing" fireball they have ever seen. The fireball, which was a meteor which hit the atmosphere, came into view on the evening of October 23. Hundreds of people witnessed the phenomenon, flocking to the International Meteor Organisation (IMO) to report their sighting.
David told the IMO: "It was beyond incredible."
Debra detailed her experience, saying: "The object falling was so green and dramatic that I began screaming to the passenger in my car - 'oh, my God--look, look at that...'
"I then saw it break into a few pieces, and continued trying to look to the extent my passenger was helping me to drive.
Staring out into the darkness, she and her husband Ivan saw "an enormous ball of light in the sky to the west. It was moving north to south, and was quite big."
A few hundred miles northwest, Daisy Sours was standing outside in Selawik, Alaska, at about 7:30 that morning. She saw something she never had before.
"It looked like fireworks, until it split into four dots," she said.
Fireball spotted in Puerto Rico
The locals took to social media to share pictures and videos of colourful fireball above the Caribbean island.
A video was shot and shared by Frankie Lucena (@frankie57pr) on Twitter in which the fireball can be seen heading in a downward direction, which the spectator claimed can be "a Taurid".
Colorful fireball from last night. The tail seems to be pointing in the direction of Taurus so it could be a Taurid meteor. 4K version at https://t.co/qY2JvyqMgl and https://t.co/dgdkUeJExN @adamonzon @DeborahTiempo @weatherchannel @amsmeteors @SkyandTelescope @pgbrown pic.twitter.com/HMSJyoQd9E
— Frankie Lucena (@frankie57pr) October 21, 2020
A very bright meteor was visible from all over the island at around 3:44 am on Saturday, reported the Society for Astronomy of the Caribbean (SAC).
The event was described by Eddie Irizarry, vice president of the SAC:
"It was a space rock probably several feet in diameter disintegrating through the atmosphere,"
Comment: Also check out SOTT's monthly documentary SOTT Earth Changes Summary - September 2020: Extreme Weather, Planetary Upheaval, Meteor Fireballs