Meteor Over Texas

This morning at 6:43 AM Central Standard Time, eyewitnesses across Texas and adjacent states saw a very bright fireball streaking across the sky, moving roughly east to west. It was also recorded by a NASA meteor camera in Mayhill, New Mexico some five hundred miles to the West, which is very unusual and testifies to the brightness of the event. This was not the re-entry of Kosmos 2251, which was destroyed in a collision with an Iridium satellite in February 2009; it is a meteor, most likely a fragment from the asteroid belt and not associated with the Geminid meteor shower. 

Preliminary results indicate that there are meteorites from this meteor on the ground north of Houston, Texas–analysis is currently underway to refine the impact area. If pieces are recovered, it will be the 13th meteorite fall recorded in the state since 1909, and the first since Ash Creek, which fell in February of 2009.

A video (in Windows Media format) of the fireball as recorded by the NASA camera in New Mexico is attached to this message. The Moon is the bright object at lower center; the fireball is on the horizon at left and is surrounded by a white box when the camera detects it. Up is north, and left is east in the video.





 

 

22 thoughts on “Meteor Over Texas”

  2. I believe I may have captured a photo of this from my home in northern New Mexico. This is the view almost due south:

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/ikewinski/8254627111/

    I had a camera making photos with an intervalometer and apparently just missed seeing it myself. That meteor photo was taken at 5:43AM MST and I see that I adjusted the ISO downward one minute later in anticipation of sunrise.

  5. I actually heard from a friend to look up into a web page address.
    And found out that a D14 ASTEROID is heading towards earth. How true is this? and why is it still a news blackout from NASA? Thanks

  6. Did NASA know this meteor event was going to take place in Houston 12/07/12? Also I read on the net (no I don’t believe everything I read, fact checking)that Dec. Jan we are supposte to have hundreds of meteor showers. Is this true and does this happen every year?

  7. I saw this object from southern Scotland early morning, roughly 6.30am
    It was travelling very fast – estimate – half million kilometres per hour due East on a trajectory parallel to Lunar orbit as I was observing the Moon at this time. Object was brighter than Venus by a factor of x4 or x5 and crossed the visible sky (horizon to horizon) in approximately 5-10 seconds.
    There was no sound and no visible tail as might be expected with a comet or meteor.
    I am an amateur astronomer.

  9. I’m just wondering because the date is getting closer and closer is the world going to end on december 2012 or is there gonna be a 3 day blackout.

  11. Today in Sweden people reported about a bright fireball in the sky. At first they said it was a bolid but people have seen the same fire ball at so many different times over the hours and ALL OVER sweden. WHAT IS IT THAT LIGHTS UP THE SKY? im scared.

  13. On Dec. 11 at 19:45 local (Paris, France) time I saw a bright white fireball in the sky south of my position 48.8394°N,2.0797°E, moving East to West at very high speed (at about elevation 30°). The sky was clear and the “object” visible so long as it was not masked by buildings.

  14. Hi Michelle –
    Look for a black rock that feels heavy for its size. Smooth outside with no bubbles, and probably magnetic.
    Thanks!
    Bill Cooke
    MSFC Meteoroid Environment Office

  15. Hi Jude –
    No, meteors are too small to detect in space, so events like the one over Houston are always a surprise. The Geminid meteor shower will peak on the night of December 13, and will have rates of up to a hundred meteors per hour, but it is a single meteor shower. There will certainly not be hundreds of meteor showers in December, though there will be hundreds of meteors (Geminids) this week.
    Thanks!
    Bill Cooke
    MSFC Meteoroid Environment Office

  17. Hi B Williamson –
    I have no idea what you saw. A meteor would leave a trail and it certainly was not a comet.
    Thanks!
    Bill Cooke
    MSFC Meteoroid Environment Office

  18. Hi Mike L. –
    Definitely a meteor, but not the same one. Great picture!
    Thanks!
    Bill Cooke
    MSFC Meteoroid Environment Office

  19. Hi Guest1 –
    Nope — has nothing to do with the Mayans.
    Thanks!
    Bill Cooke
    MSFC Meteoroid Environment Office

  20. I live near the upper pan handle of West Virginia. Last night, Wednesday, December 12 at approximately 5:48 PM EST is saw a very bright object moving west to east. I was facing south and this object was fairly low in the southern sky moving about the speed of a satellite by way bigger and brighter than any satellite I have ever seen.

    Did anyone else witness this?

    What was it?

  21. My husband and I were just starting to fish near Galveston Tx. Just before the sun came up he said “look at that HUGE FLORESCENT GREEN shooting star. I looked and just caught a really wide swath of fire then twinkled out. It came from east to west and he said it was a large as a basket ball in the sky. I got to see the tail, it was so very wide and bright. then it twinkled out like a sparkler…..We were wondering if it was seen by someone else. I just thought to check it out on line, and run across your video…..please let me know more…… Thanks

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