Meteor Flashes Over Southeast Louisiana at 5 a.m. as Experts Check for Surviving Fragments
Updated
Updated · WBRZ · Jun 29
Meteor Flashes Over Southeast Louisiana at 5 a.m. as Experts Check for Surviving Fragments
3 articles · Updated · WBRZ · Jun 29
Summary
Around 5 a.m., a bright green fireball with a fiery trail streaked across southeast Louisiana’s pre-dawn sky, ending in a vivid flash seen by early risers.
Astronomers said the display likely came from a meteoroid hitting Earth’s atmosphere at high speed, where friction heated it, stripped away outer layers and triggered fragmentation.
Objects larger than about 3 feet wide can produce an exceptionally bright fireball, and if the breakup ends in an aerial explosion, scientists classify it as a bolide.
Experts are now reviewing data to determine the object’s final classification and whether any meteorite fragments survived to reach the ground.