A bright fireball illuminated a dark night sky across several western states over the weekend, videos show. More than 30 people across Colorado, Idaho, Utah and Wyoming reported seeing it Saturday, Sept. 14, around 8:30 p.
m., according to the American Meteor Society. Most of the reports came from Colorado and Utah.
“ Brightest thing I’ve ever seen at night,” one of the reports out of Colorado said. “The fireball (itself) seemed brighter than a full moon, and (lit) up the surrounding area, almost as if we had a brief moment of day light.” Videos show how the glowing object illuminated trees and a mountainous canyon as it hurtled toward Earth.
Someone in Paradise, Utah, noted it was the flash from the fireball that made them look up and catch a glimpse of it before it disappeared behind the horizon. “I’ve seen meteors, but this was amazing !” someone from Garden City, Utah, said. They added that the sonic boom sounded “like a distant bomb.
” Someone who reported seeing it in Longmont, Colorado, thought the same thing . “It was gorgeous and surprising. I wasn’t sure initially if it was a missile, a meteor or something else,” they said.
“I half expected a mushroom cloud to appear as I drove into a shockwave. It was so bright and beautiful.”.