A fiery meteor was spotted over many area of Washington, DC; Virginia; North Carolina; and Maryland tonight, including Fairfax, Kensington, and Pentagon City.
“A white center with red tail, sinking and moving quickly,” said a Twitter user who spotted it over Kensington.
“I was getting on 495 from 95 – it was huge! I was waiting for an explosion. Really cool,” said Julie Matthews via Facebook.
“Looked like a giant fireball,” said Brad Lowry, who saw it from Greensboro, NC.
“Saw one shoot over the National Mall; looked bright and green,” added Joe McMonigle.
Geoff Chester, with the U.S. Naval Observatory, told WTOP this was most likely a very bright type of meteor that is commonly referred to as a fireball.
“They occur on extremely clear nights and they generally get a lot of publicity when they happen,” Chester said.
They’re typically the size of a baseball or basketball, and burn up in the upper atmosphere of the Earth.