Fireballs
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Comet 2

Stunning daylight fireball explodes with sonic boom over Russia, meteorites possible


The Watchers
Thu, 21 Jun 2018 12:00 UTC
Very bright daylight fireball explodes over Russia, meteorites possible
© YouTube user Apostol875Bright fireball explodes over central Russia on June 21, 2018.
A very bright daylight fireball exploded over western Russia during the early morning hours of June 21, 2018. The event lasted several seconds before the object disintegrated in a bright flash.

The meteor was seen from the cities of Kursk, Lipetsk, Voronezh and Orel. A sonic boom was associated with this event and reported by residents.

Comment: Activity in our skies is certainly heating up - below are the events documented in just the last two weeks or so:

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Meteor

US National Science and Technology Council calls for improved asteroid detection, tracking and deflection

Marcia Dunn
Yahoo News
Wed, 20 Jun 2018 00:00 UTC
NASA asteroid tracking deflection
On Wednesday, June 20, 2018, the U.S.'s National Science and Technology Council released a report calling for improved asteroid detection, tracking and deflection. NASA is taking part in the effort, along with federal emergency and White House officials.
The U.S. government is stepping up efforts to protect the planet from incoming asteroids that could wipe out entire regions or even continents.

The National Science and Technology Council released a report Wednesday calling for improved asteroid detection, tracking and deflection. NASA is participating, along with federal emergency, military, White House and other officials.

For now, scientists know of no asteroids or comets heading our way. But one could sneak up on us, and that's why the government wants a better plan.


Comment: And they are sneaking up on us with increasing frequency.


NASA's planetary defense officer, Lindley Johnson, said scientists have found 95 percent of all these near-Earth objects measuring one kilometer (two-thirds of a mile) or bigger. But the hunt is still on for the remaining 5 percent and smaller rocks that could still inflict big damage.

Comment: Looks like someone has been paying attention to the alarming number of space rocks in our skies recently:

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Fireball

Daytime meteor fireball jets across Toowoomba, Queensland sky

Meghan Harris
The Chronicle
Thu, 21 Jun 2018 09:28 UTC
An unexplained bright light was seen travelling across the sky above Toowoomba earlier this morning.

There may be an innocent explanation for it but it brings forward the age old question - are we alone in the universe?

It is something that divides people all across the world and when unexplained flashes of light or objects are snapped in the sky, the question is again brought to the forefront of people's minds. Most of the time they can be explained, but sometimes they can't.

This morning Nathan Murphy shared a photo he snapped of the puzzling light moving across the sky at 6.30am.
Fireball over Toowoomba, Australia
© Nathan MurphyNathan Murphy captured a bright light in the sky outside his home in Wyreema.
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Fireball 2

Meteor fireball arrives with a boom, lights up sky in New Zealand

Mark Price
Otago DailyTimes
Mon, 18 Jun 2018 14:54 UTC
Fireball - stock image
Stock image
It glowed like a meteor, boomed like a meteor, and therefore - applying the duck test - was probably a meteor.

Social media pages across the Upper Clutha lit up on Monday night with postings of an extraterrestrial object in the sky to the west of Lakes Wanaka and Hawea.

Some said it was green, others that it was blue and many who did not see it heard the boom.

First to post were Dave Tetzlaff and partner Kirsten Mann, from their Lake Hawea vantage point.
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Fireball

'Look, a Foo Fighter!' Meteor fireball lights up rock concert in the Netherlands


RT
Sun, 17 Jun 2018 16:15 UTC
meteor fireball concert
Music fans were given an unexpected surprise when a fiery meteorite gatecrashed a set by the Foo Fighters during a Dutch music festival.

The American rockers were performing at Landgraaf's Pinkpop festival when a fireball streaked across the sky. The celestial ball of light is thought to have been the same phenomenon observed in dozens of reports to the International Meteor Organization (IMO).

The Belgian agency, which documents comet and meteor shower sightings, reported 90 eyewitness cases involving the fireball across Belgium, Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands and France late on June 16.


Comment: In case anyone is alarmed by our title for this item...
Wikipedia

The term foo fighter was used by Allied aircraft pilots in World War II to describe various UFOs or mysterious aerial phenomena seen in the skies over both the European and Pacific theaters of operations...


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Fireball 2

Bright fireball spotted over Bahia, Brazil

Marcelo Zurita
bramonmeteor.org
Fri, 15 Jun 2018 08:26 UTC
right fireball spotted over Bahia, Brazil on June 15, 2018

Comment: Translated from Portuguese with Google Translate.


A big bolide was seen in the skies of Bahia tonight (June 15). The BRAMON MDE1 / BA Station, run by Alexsandro Mota, recorded the meteoroid's passage through the atmosphere. The video is impressive and shows the meteor cutting across the field of view of the camera.

Check out: The clouds present at the moment, have somewhat disrupted the measurement of its brightness, but we estimate something around -8.

It was previously associated with the June iota Pegasids meteor shower, a minor rain proposed by Greaves in 2012 that has its radiant on the Pegasus Constellation. However, its definitive classification will only be possible if there is a second image that allows us to extract more information about the meteoroid orbit before entering the atmosphere.

Comment: Following the previous years documented increase in fireballs, 2018 seems to be continuing the trend. In just the last month SOTT has recorded the following:

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Fireball 5

California resident captures 'giant flash' of meteor on home surveillance camera


Sott.net
Tue, 12 Jun 2018 20:57 UTC
Fireball over Fresno, CA
© YouTube/Kent Coffman Jr
On June 12, 2018, YouTuber 'Kent Coffman Jr', a resident of Fresno, California, uploaded footage of a meteor with a ''giant flash' from what appears to be a home surveillance camera.

According to the American Meteor Society, this same fireball was seen in Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Idaho and New Mexico.Their report can be found here.

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Fireball 2

Target practise? Asteroid LV3 will be 35th asteroid this year to flyby Earth at 1 lunar distance


The Watchers
Tue, 12 Jun 2018 16:16 UTC
Asteroid 2018 LV3
Asteroid 2018 LV3
A newly discovered asteroid designated 2018 LV3 will flyby Earth at a distance of 0.86 LD / 0.00219 AU (327 619 km / 203 573 miles) on June 15, 2018. This is the 35th known asteroid to flyby Earth within 1 lunar distance since the start of the year.

This near-Earth object has an estimated diameter between 13 and 30 m (42 - 98 feet) and it belongs to the Apollo group of asteroids. It was discovered at Pan-STARRS 2, Haleakala on June 11, 4 days before its close approach.

Comment: From close calls to those actually blazing into our atmosphere, space rock activity is on the increase:

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Question

Space rock? Mystery 'explosion' and 'flash' leaves residents baffled in Ruthin, North Wales

Kelly Williams
Daily Post (Wales)
Thu, 07 Jun 2018 12:51 UTC
Ruthin
© Robert Parry-JonesRuthin
Residents have been left baffled by a loud "explosion" heard in the early hours of this morning.

Homeowners in Ruthin were jolted from their sleep by the noise that was heard as far away as Haulfryn and Rhewl.

Some took to social media in a bid to find out what it was with others reporting seeing a "flash" and hearing the police helicopter overhead shortly afterwards.

In a local forum called Fans of the old Ruthin Blog, one person wrote at 12.55am: "Did anyone hear that explosion? Is everyone OK?"
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Meteor

Loud boom heard, felt in northern Arkansas and south central Missouri (Update)


KY3
Wed, 06 Jun 2018 20:42 UTC
West Plains, NO sign
© KY3
Did you hear it Wednesday? That loud boom. So loud in fact that people in northern Arkansas and south central Missouri heard it and were all asking the same question around noon Wednesday. What was that boom?

"It was just a loud boom," Richard Harrell said.

"I thought it kind of sounded like a bomb," Sadie Hutchinson added.

"It felt like somebody actually ran into the building," Michael Romero told KY3.

Dispatchers at West Plains Police Department were busy for nearly two hours taking calls from all over West Plains and the surrounding area, with folks asking, what was that sound?

Comment: Update: On June 8, 2018, KTTS reported that more booms were being reported across the Ozarks:
People in Rogersville and Ava tell KTTS News they heard a noise rattle windows and ceiling tiles just before noon today. A similar sound was reported last night around midnight by someone in Ava.

The booms were first reported to the National Weather Service on Wednesday. It's still unclear what's causing it.

Meteorologists have speculated that it could be anything from a sonic boom from a military plane to a meteorite.
On the same date, KY3 in Missouri reports that the booms were heard in Marshfield, Good Hope, Cabool, Houston, Oldfield, and Seymour around midday Friday.

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