Lake Erie fireball leaves glowing trail over Ohio, U.S.
A bright fireball streaked across the twilight sky over Lake Erie at 23:00 UTC (19:00 LT) on October 21, 2024. The event lasted several seconds before the object fragmented and disintegrated, leaving a glowing vapor trail near Ashtabula, Ohio.
Very bright fireball over Lake Erie and Ohio, U.S. on October 21, 2024. Image credit: Brad Hague
- Among the three fireballs observed in the Great Lakes region on October 21, the Lake Erie fireball was especially remarkable for its widespread visibility and the bright trail it left in the Ohio sky.
The American Meteor Society (AMS) received over 530 reports about a bright fireball seen over Lake Erie on October 21 from observers in Ontario, Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, District of Columbia, Virginia, West Virginia, Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, and North Carolina.
Observers reported a bright green flash with a yellow streak, slight fragmentation at the end, and a glowing vapor trail in the twilight sky.
Several observers said the fireball looked like it hit the ground.
The AMS received 10 videos of the event, which was also captured by cameras from the Southern Ontario Meteor Network, the NASA Fireball Network, and publicly accessible cameras as far away as Cincinnati.
Analysis of the available data made by NASA’s Meteoroid Environment Office places the first visibility of the meteor at an altitude of 65 km (40 miles) above the Lake Erie shoreline near Willoughby, Ohio.
The object moved north of east at a slow speed for meteors of 64 400 km/h (45 000 mph). It traveled nearly parallel to the Lake Erie shore for some 24 km (39 miles) before disintegrating 35 km (22 miles) above the water near Ashtabula, Ohio.
This fireball was produced by a fragment of an asteroid weighing about 0.9 kg (2 pounds) and having a diameter of approximately 10 cm (4 inches), according to MEO.
It is not associated with the currently active Orionid meteor shower.
With three fireballs recorded in the Great Lakes region on October 21, the Lake Erie fireball stands out due to its visibility and the glowing trail it left in the skies over Ohio.
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References:
1 Fireball event 6206-2024 – AMS – Accessed on October 23, 2024
2 Fireball over Lake Erie on October 21, 2024 – NASA/MEO – October 22, 2024
I'm a dedicated researcher, journalist, and editor at The Watchers. With over 20 years of experience in the media industry, I specialize in hard science news, focusing on extreme weather, seismic and volcanic activity, space weather, and astronomy, including near-Earth objects and planetary defense strategies. You can reach me at teo /at/ watchers.news.
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