‘Lit up the whole sky’: Residents across 15 states spotted a bright green fireball in the night sky on Sunday

A bright green fireball was seen streaking across the night sky over 15 US states on Sunday night, according to the American Meteor Society. The sighting drew a lot of attention after dozens of residents captured the event on camera and submitted reports to the organization.

The organization says it received over 500 reports following the event, which was observed shortly after 10:30 p.m. Central Time on Sunday. Reports came in from residents across over 15 states in America, including, Illinois, Missouri, Tennessee, South Carolina, Texas, Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Iowa, Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, Minnesota, and Oklahoma, according to the organization.

Experts believe the green fireball was caused by a meteor entering the atmosphere, rather than space junk. The organization said researchers are currently examining the fireball’s path, eyewitness accounts, security camera footage, and other available observations to determine whether any fragments may have survived atmospheric entry and reached the ground. 

Witnesses describe a fireball so bright it lit up the entire sky

One witness in Oakland, Tennessee, described the experience to the American Meteor Society, saying, “It was SUPER BRIGHT and lit up the whole sky.” The sighting appears to left a strong impression on those who saw it firsthand across multiple states.

Another witness, located in Arlington, Tennessee, shared a similarly vivid reaction. “I ain’t never seen anything like it,” the witness told the American Meteor Society. “The colors were pretty and crazy.” Several witnesses reported that the object appeared to disintegrate before it disappeared from view, a sight dramatic enough to rival anything found in space documentaries. 

The green color of the fireball, as observed and reported by witnesses, is consistent with what scientists say is typical of bright meteors. As Swinburne University of Technology astrophysicist Dr. Kirsten Banks told nine.com.au, the green glow associated with fireballs is caused by oxygen atoms in the air interacting with the meteor as it moves through the atmosphere.

“The green particularly in the photo tells me that it’s a bright meteor known as a fireball,” Banks said. “They often leave a bright-green glow behind them caused by the oxygen atoms in the air interacting with the fireball as it plunges through the atmosphere.” Dr. Banks made these comments in relation to a separate but similar event that occurred around the same time.

That separate fireball was spotted over Melbourne, Australia, also on Sunday, according to nine.com.au. Dr. Banks said the light was “definitely a meteor” based on its brightness and speed. While the two events occurred on the same night, they appear to be separate incidents in different parts of the world. Interestingly, space objects have made news in other ways recently, Subway ran a promotion offering free food for a year to someone with proof of an interstellar traveler. 

Back in the United States, the scale of the sighting, spanning at least 15 states and generating nearly 400 reports, indicates that the fireball was visible across a wide geographic area, according to data collected by the American Meteor Society. 

The organization continues to gather information from witnesses and available footage as part of its ongoing review, and researchers are said to be continuing their analysis of the available evidence to reach a more definitive conclusion.