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Fireball over New Mexico

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Deborah Byrd

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April 5, 2019

Very bright streak in the night sky, fuzzy in places from frost on the camera lens. — View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Mike Lewinski in Tres Piedras, New Mexico – of Wilderness Vagabonds on Facebook – caught this glorious fireball, or very bright meteor, on April 3, 2019 at 11:12 p.m. He said it left a persistent ion train that lasted more than 6 minutes. This is a cropped image of the fireball. Mike commented he captured it with an automatic camera set-up, but that his lens had frosted over a bit. Check out Mike’s animated gif below!

Have you seen a bright fireball? Report it to the American Meteor Society (AMS).

Here’s Mike’s report to the AMS.

Bottom line: Still photo and animated gif of a fireball – a very bright meteor, aka a shooting star – seen over Tres Piedras, New Mexico on April 3, 2019.

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April 5, 2019

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Deborah Byrd

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Deborah Byrd (asteroid 3505 Byrd) helps edit EarthSky.org and is a frequent host of EarthSky videos. Deborah created the EarthSky radio series in 1991 and founded EarthSky.org in 1994. Prior to that, she had worked for the University of Texas McDonald Observatory since 1976, and created and produced their Star Date radio series. She has won a galaxy of awards from the broadcasting and science communities, including having an asteroid named in her honor in 1990, a Public Service Award from the National Science Board in 2003, and the Education Prize from the American Astronomical Society in 2020. A science communicator and educator since 1976, Byrd believes in science as a force for good in the world and a vital tool for the 21st century. "Being an EarthSky editor is like hosting a big global party for cool nature-lovers," she says.