Although the winter solstice was short on sunlight, Alaskans witnessed a different kind illumination Wednesday thanks to a meteor that fell across Southcentral Alaska.
People in the Talkeetna region claimed that they heard the meteor pass overhead. Many people also posted comments about the event on social media, describing it as fast and amazing, and claiming it lit up the sky. Others also shared video footage from their security cameras that showed a bright blue flare.
(Courtesy Joe Tate).
Brian Brettschneider, National Weather Service Climatologist, recorded the sight from Anchorage’s Nest camera. He was heading north to south at just before 6 a.m.
Brettschneider reached Brettschneider by phone Wednesday morning and said that the meteor was his first one seen through his doorbell camera.
Brettschneider stated, “This is the most impressive one that I know of in the area.”
Meteors are the debris of comets, asteroids and other celestial bodies. Most meteors are ejected from Earth’s atmosphere according to NASA. A few meteorites can be formed from the debris falling toward Earth every day.
Mark Conde, University of Alaska Fairbanks Physics Professor, stated Wednesday that meteors travel at an average speed of less than 7 miles per second.
While most meteors are made up of dust particles, the ones large enough to be heard above ground are larger. Conde estimated Wednesday’s rock to be the size of a grape or a golfball.
Conde stated, “I believe there are many objects of this size hitting the Earth each day, but most go unseen because it’s either daytime or there’s no one there to see them.”
It could be from the Ursid meteor Shower, which started Dec. 17 and will peak on Thursday and Friday. According Space.com, The Ursids, which are pieces of comet 8P/Tuttle debris, are a common low-intensity shower. This year, they will be more visible because it coincides with a new Moon.
KTNA’s Philip Manning contributed reporting for this story.
