Fireball meteor, spotted across Canada and U.S, among most reported to the American Meteor Society
Nearly a day after witnessing a mysterious stream of light beaming through the evening skies while driving through Windsor, Ont., Bassem Mazloum still wasn’t sure what he had witnessed.
It was colourful: red and yellow with a hint of blue and green, he said.
“I thought a falling star that was really slow or really big — or a meteor which is something I never thought I’d see.”
Officials with the American Meteor Society (AMS) confirm that’s exactly what he saw. On Thursday around 7:30 p.m., a fireball meteor passed over parts of Canada and the U.S.
It wasn’t your typical meteor either. In fact, it’s become one of the most reported fireball meteor sightings to the American Meteor Society this year.
Fireball meteors aren’t a rare phenomenon by any means, according to AMS operations manager Mike Hankey. He said the group has received more than 450 reports of fireball meteor sightings just in 2022.
But what makes Thursday’s meteor so unique was its trajectory and the time at which it fell.
“Its size is part of it but it’s also the angle that it entered Earth’s atmosphere. This was a shallow angle … so it travelled for a longer period on a longer track of land,” said Hankey, adding the meteor fell for about 10 seconds which is “long for a fireball meteor.”
“But it also came at the perfect time when a lot of people were outside and the skies were clear. I’m in Maryland and a lot of people actually saw it here as well. People in Kentucky saw it. You’re all the way in Ontario and you saw it.”
Hankey added while Thursday’s meteor likely started about one metre in size when it fragmented, it was likely the equivalent of a raisin or grape by the time it hit the Earth — assuming it hadn’t already disintegrated before impact.
“It’s not the type of thing that creates a crater on the ground or starts a fire or is even hot or glowing on the ground,” said Hankey.
But for people like Emilie Robak, who describes herself as a “space nerd,” Thursday’s phenomenon is something she won’t soon forget.
She was driving her car when she happened to look outside at the right moment.
“I was just speechless,” said Robak.
She said the closest experience she had to what she witnessed Thursday was simply watching videos of shooting stars as a child.
“I was just pretty excited. I felt like a little kid again.”
As of Friday evening, the AMS has received 916 sighting reports for Thursday’s meteor. That puts the event just behind sightings of a fireball meteor in the United Kingdom this year which received 1,259 reports.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Quebec judge orders bus driver to stand trial for 2023 daycare crash deaths
A judge has ordered a Quebec man to stand trial on charges of first-degree murder in the deaths of two children killed when a bus rammed into a Montreal-area daycare last year.
Trudeau promises $1B in loans for child-care providers to expand care centres
The federal government is launching a new loan program to help child-care providers in Canada expand their spaces, and will be extending further student loan forgiveness and training options for early childhood educators, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Thursday.
Where is the worst place for allergy sufferers in Canada?
The spring allergy season has started early in many parts of Canada, with high levels of pollen in some cities already. Experts weigh in on which areas have it worse so far this season.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
Multiple bridges in Calgary shut down for police incident
Calgary police have shut down a number of bridges into and out of the downtown core as officers deal with a distraught individual.
N.B. man wins $64 million from Lotto 6/49
A New Brunswicker will go to bed Thursday night much richer than he was Wednesday after collecting on a winning lottery ticket he let sit on his bedroom dresser for nearly a year.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.
'Nonsense:' Doug Ford slams lawsuits filed by Ontario school boards against social media platforms
Premier Doug Ford says that lawsuits launched by four Ontario school boards against a trio of social media platforms are “nonsense” and risk becoming a distraction to the work that really matters.
Do these exercises for core strength if you can't stomach doing planks
Planks are one of the most effective exercises for strengthening your midsection, as they target all of your major core muscles: the transverse abdominis, rectus abdominis, external obliques and internal obliques. Yet despite the popularity of various 10-minute plank challenges, planking is actually one of the most dreaded core exercises, according to many fitness experts.