California skies were illuminated by a fireball, leaving stargazers in awe, and professionals indicate that more meteors are expected soon.
The dazzling streak caught the attention of those in the San Francisco Bay area and various regions of Northern California, with witnesses also reporting a significant loud boom.
“It resembled a plane crash or a rocket,” noted Philip Terzian, an amateur astronomer who managed to capture an image of the meteor while he was on a ridge near Palo Alto.
Terzian was there with a group of fellow astronomy fans, who had not convened in a while and serendipitously gathered for the meteor sighting.
“It was definitely a ‘Holy Cow!’ moment,” he expressed.
Observers characterized the streak as crescent-shaped and exhibited a reddish-orange hue.
The sound that many reported might have been a sonic boom created by the meteor’s flight at speeds exceeding that of sound, according to Jonathan Braidman, an astronomy instructor at the Chabot Space & Science Center in Oakland.
“It’s akin to a jet fighter,” he remarked.
Braidman speculated that the meteor was probably composed of metal and rock from the asteroid belt. The astronomers at the center approximated its size to that of a car, although Braidman mentioned it likely fragmented into much smaller pieces before reaching the ground, scattering over several hundred miles.
This light phenomenon coincides with expectations from astronomers for a more spectacular display this weekend as part of the expansive and swift Orionid meteor shower, which is named for the Orion constellation that serves as its backdrop. The Orion meteors originate from Halley’s Comet, becoming visible as Earth passes through their debris trail.
Braidman does not believe there is a connection between this meteor and the forthcoming Orionid shower.
This meteor sighting marks at least the second occurrence in Northern California in recent months. A meteor that detonated on April 22 was witnessed by a wide area across the region and into Nevada.
That explosion led a contingent of scientists to take to the skies in a slow-moving airship to search for meteorites.
by David Livingstone
