Giant Fireball Spotted Over Colorado This Weekend
A giant fireball was spotted over Colorado early Sunday morning, according to reports from the American Meteor Society (AMS).
The fireball was seen streaking across the sky around 3:33 a.m. MST, and was reportedly visible from a wide area of the state, including Denver, Boulder, and Colorado Springs.
Several people shared videos of the fireball on social media, showing a bright light that lingered in the sky for several seconds before fading away.
The AMS has received more than 80 reports of the fireball from across Colorado, as well as from Wyoming, Nebraska, and New Mexico.
Videos capture bright meteor falling above Colorado |
The AMS estimates that the fireball was about the size of a basketball and traveled at speeds of up to 186,000 miles per hour.
The fireball is believed to have been caused by a meteoroid, which is a small piece of rock or debris that enters Earth's atmosphere.
Meteoroids that are large enough to survive passage through the atmosphere and reach the ground are called meteorites.
The AMS says that it is not uncommon for fireballs to be seen over Colorado, but it is rare for them to be as bright and widespread as the one that was seen on Sunday morning.
The AMS is still investigating the fireball, and it is not yet known where it originated or what its composition is.