Fireball Briefly Outshines Mayon Volcano at 10:33 p.m. During Philippines Eruption
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · May 26
Fireball Briefly Outshines Mayon Volcano at 10:33 p.m. During Philippines Eruption
5 articles · Updated · The New York Times · May 26
At 10:33 p.m. local time on Monday, a fireball flashed over Luzon and for about a second shone brighter than lava streaming from the erupting Mayon volcano.
At least two webcams captured the object as it dropped first like a bright ball and then an incandescent streak before vanishing almost immediately.
Scientists said the spectacle was an unusual coincidence rather than a rare type of object: fireballs—burning fragments of rocky asteroids or icy comets—are not especially uncommon, but appearing over an active eruption is.
Experts said the contrast made the moment striking, with one asteroid specialist noting that something roughly the size of a coffee cup briefly upstaged one of the Philippines' most active volcanoes.
Could a meteor impact on an active volcano trigger a far more catastrophic eruption?
Is 2026's global surge in fireballs a warning of a larger, more dangerous impact event to come?