Did you see that?!
Some of you may have been able to catch the curious celestial body lit up the South Florida skies last night. The fireball, which came crashing onto Earth with a long fiery tail, a bright explosion and a thunderous boom, cruised the skies around 10:16 p.m. on Tuesday night, April 13.
The mesmerizing spectacle lasted only a few seconds but some Miamians were able to catch the entire thing on camera and it’s absolutely incredible.
https://twitter.com/thecollinlee/status/1381798476607021056
Like us you may still be wondering what exactly was that fireball, well, it seems to have been an asteroid fragment that NASA and the NWS had been expecting to pass really close to Earth.
According to NASA astronomer who spoke with the Palm Beach Post the bright spectacle was caused by an asteroid fragment of approximately 900 pounds that hit the Earth’s atmosphere at 38,000 mph.
The light show looked straight out of our wildest sci-fi dreams but according to experts the meteor posed no threat to humans.
@CoralTap Just saw this in the sky from Parkland at 10:16PM. #Meteor pic.twitter.com/E1rqXUbku8
— m (@cbkcc1) April 13, 2021
The meteor broke apart about 23 miles above the Atlantic releasing the energy equivalent of 14 tons of TNT making it visible all the way from the Bahamas. The explosion could also explain the loud, booming sound many locals said to have heard last night.
Fireball in the #Miami sky! Probably a #meteor as reported in the #news. Caught on my #ring pic.twitter.com/IKie0kuwaa
— Eugene Pons (@pons_eugene) April 13, 2021
The stunning spectacle was a rare and one-of-a-kind occurrence, but astrologists say the Lyrids meteor shower is expected to begin on about April 16 and last through April 25, bringing Miamians a new opportunity to witness the breathtaking power of the heavens!
See also: You Can Cruise Through Magical Neon Blue Waters At This National Park Just A Few Hours From Miami
[Featured image:Unsplash]