A large fireball blazed over Lake Erie last night

Ryan Connor from North Royalton, Ohio, was one among many people who captured a large fireball, on October 21, 2024. The fireball was visible in early evening, across a wide area in the U.S. and some parts of Canada. Image via the American Meteor Society

A special report from Robert Lunsford of the American Meteor Society

Large fireball over Lake Erie

I just finished posting 342 reports of a large fireball – an exceptionally bright meteor – that occurred over North America, near the U.S.-Canada border. It happened at around 7 p.m. EDT on the evening of October 21, 2024. The American Meteor Society received reports from witnesses ranging from North Carolina westward to Kentucky, northward to Michigan and eastward to New York.

Fireball can be very bright! And they’re nearly always unexpected. This one’s computer-generated trajectory was from west to east over Lake Erie, the 4th-largest lake by surface area of North America’s five Great Lakes (and the 11th-largest lake globally). The trajectory ended just offshore from Erie, Pennsylvania.

The reason fireballs are visible from such a large area is that they appear at a high altitude of 50 miles (80 km). The Taurid meteor shower is currently active and above the horizon at that time of night, but this fireball was moving in a direction opposite the Taurids. So this event was most likely a random meteor, not associated with any known meteor shower.

Fireballs have been frequent lately, but this is one of the largest events to have occurred recently. If you have witnessed this or any other fireball, we encourage you to share your experience by filling out at fireball report.

Watch the October 21 fireball on video

Ryan Connor from North Royalton, Ohio, captured the fireball with 2 cameras.

John Oelschlager recorded this video from West Mifflin, Pennsylvania.

Video recorded from Tillsonburg, Canada.

Brad Hague also captured the fireball from Toronto, Canada.

Walter White from Lancaster, Pennsylvania, was also suprised by the fireball.

Bottom Line: A bright fireball occurred over Lake Erie on Monday evening – October 21, 2024. The American Meteor Society had received nearly 350 reports as of this writing (11 UTC on October 22), but it must been seen by thousands in the surrounding area.

The post A large fireball blazed over Lake Erie last night first appeared on EarthSky.

from EarthSky https://ift.tt/hdIJCyf

Ryan Connor from North Royalton, Ohio, was one among many people who captured a large fireball, on October 21, 2024. The fireball was visible in early evening, across a wide area in the U.S. and some parts of Canada. Image via the American Meteor Society

A special report from Robert Lunsford of the American Meteor Society

Large fireball over Lake Erie

I just finished posting 342 reports of a large fireball – an exceptionally bright meteor – that occurred over North America, near the U.S.-Canada border. It happened at around 7 p.m. EDT on the evening of October 21, 2024. The American Meteor Society received reports from witnesses ranging from North Carolina westward to Kentucky, northward to Michigan and eastward to New York.

Fireball can be very bright! And they’re nearly always unexpected. This one’s computer-generated trajectory was from west to east over Lake Erie, the 4th-largest lake by surface area of North America’s five Great Lakes (and the 11th-largest lake globally). The trajectory ended just offshore from Erie, Pennsylvania.

The reason fireballs are visible from such a large area is that they appear at a high altitude of 50 miles (80 km). The Taurid meteor shower is currently active and above the horizon at that time of night, but this fireball was moving in a direction opposite the Taurids. So this event was most likely a random meteor, not associated with any known meteor shower.

Fireballs have been frequent lately, but this is one of the largest events to have occurred recently. If you have witnessed this or any other fireball, we encourage you to share your experience by filling out at fireball report.

Watch the October 21 fireball on video

Ryan Connor from North Royalton, Ohio, captured the fireball with 2 cameras.

John Oelschlager recorded this video from West Mifflin, Pennsylvania.

Video recorded from Tillsonburg, Canada.

Brad Hague also captured the fireball from Toronto, Canada.

Walter White from Lancaster, Pennsylvania, was also suprised by the fireball.

Bottom Line: A bright fireball occurred over Lake Erie on Monday evening – October 21, 2024. The American Meteor Society had received nearly 350 reports as of this writing (11 UTC on October 22), but it must been seen by thousands in the surrounding area.

The post A large fireball blazed over Lake Erie last night first appeared on EarthSky.

from EarthSky https://ift.tt/hdIJCyf