0445 AM driving southbound on 270 around the shady grove exit. It was a green "fireball" and seemed to be heading in an easterly direction.

I saw it!!!

I was driving from Bel Air to Edgewood when I saw it light up the sky. It was right around 4:45am. It was incredible. I thought to myself at first...wow, what an amazing shooting star, but then it got extremely bright and somewhat green as it streaked across the sky. It was one of the coolest things I've ever seen. I never saw it die off...it when beyond the treeline so I couldn't see where it ended up.

This morning, while traveling south on Rt 100, I saw a very large greenish-yellow colored object burning (with fiery tail) its way through the atmosphere in the East. It appeared to be heading for the Bay…..

Compared to the usual wisps of light very high up in the stratosphere that I usually see, this thing was huge. Is the Earth traveling through a meteor belt at this time? Could it have been a piece of space debris?

FR: Too fast for space debris. It was a meteor. This is the time of year for the Eta Lyrid meteor shower, But I'm less sure whether this could have been part of that event. I'll let meteor watchers comment on that.

I was heading South on 270 out of Frederick and at approximately 4:47 a.m. I saw this "ball of fire" shooting diagonally downward in the sky heading east. It had a tail on it that appeared to be burning off. It went behind buildings and trees. It happened so fast but was amazing!

Seen it myself comming down 70 East this morning. Firt thing that went through my head, I thought a plane went down. Thanks to my trusted WTOP, they confirmed it was a meteor a few minutes later.

This morning on the way to work I saw something unusual. Traveling East on Rt 16 just West of Greencastle, PA. about 4:45-4:50 a meteorite a satellite burning up, went sailing troughs the night sky from the SW. to the NE. It left a long streak across the sky that started out as a white thin line and grew into a long green tail before braking up into several small streaks and diapering over the horizon under the crescent moon.

FR: Diapering, huh? 8-)

i sit in a hot tub at that hour and saw the meterior over the water surrounding carpenters point near havre de grace, it was very bright, and expected to see it plunge into the water, but it extinquished just prior to hitting the water. i see a lot of shooting stars at that time of the morning, but have never seen one this bright or this close.

FR: Distance is deceptive with these things. What you saw was undoubtedly scores of miles in the air, and even farther away. Watch as more reports come in, and you'll see how widely it was observed - far from Havre de Grace. Thanks for the report.

I saw this incredible sight this AM, approximately 4:15-4:30 AM, in Odenton, MD. It was bluish-green and had a sparkling orange tail. It was about 20 degrees. I think a S.E. direction. I was most amazed at how slow it seemed to be traveling.

I saw the hugh meteor this morning on I-270 around Gaithersburg/Rockville area. It was approx 4:47 am. At first I thought it was a shooting star but it was huge and bright green with a tail. I was headed south and it entered from the west going east. Absolutely amazing to see. - Dawn

Heading south on 97 from Gettysburg at about 4:45 this morning, I spotted a bright object moving across the sky from west to east at approximatey 45 degrees above the horizon. Brilliant green in color, with trailing pieces. One of the most awesome things of that nature that I have ever seen.

I saw it this morning at 4:45 am while driving on the Loudon County Parkway in Ashburn VA. Amazing fire ball with a bright green tail. Beautiful :-)

I saw it at 4:48 am in central Massachusetts. It traveled from the southwest to the southeast right above the horizon. It was a very bright yellow fireball with a train twice as long and just as bright with pieces of fire breaking off.

I was on northbound 83 about to get on 695, I literally thought it was about to disintegrate and sprinkle all over the highway, it got SO close to ground level before burning out!

FR: You were northbound? Are you sure? Most observers in this area are saying they saw it moving across the sky from west to east, or southwest to southeast. That would have been hard to see from a northbound vehicle. Directions, please.

I saw it very, very low above the South East horizon by New Alexandria, PA (near Pittsburgh). I am amazed at how bright it was for being so far away from me! (I wonder if I get the record for being the farthest away to see this one.)

My son saw it at 4:45 A.M. this morning going to work, we live in Ronks, PA east of Lancaster.

I saw the green fireball on my way to work driving in Salisbury, MD heading eastbound. It appeared to have been travelling off the coast.

This just in from Phil Henry, in Virginia: "I SAW IT.
I was heading east on Rt 50, probably near Annandale.
Must have been around 0445.
Appeared to be heading north.
First saw it in the right side of my front car window.
Watched it all the way across my window. I think it started to fade out at the left side of my windshied.
~30-40 degrees off horizon
Seemed to be gaining slightly in altitude
Green yellow
Big ball with a really long trail of sparks
~4-5 seconds I think.
AWESOME."

I was driving to work this morning & I saw a large blue-green ball of flame passing across the sky before me. I was driving south and it crossed my path west to east. It was traveling much faster than a Jet and I could see fragments spewing off of it. It traveled for about 20 seconds from the point I saw it and the time it appeared to burn out. As I saw it burn out it appeared to shoot out in several direction. I don't believe it hit the ground as it appeared it was going to do.

I was driving south on rt 206, flanders NJ around 4:40-4:45AM

FR: Twenty seconds? Really? Sounds too high. Count off 20 seconds by your watch. It's a VERY long time for a meteor to be visible.

You may be right, It was quite a sight to see.

I was heading east (southeast, by my trucks compass) on Rt.7 in Virginia this morning a few miles west of Tyson's Corner. I saw a long streak of light in the sky to the east at about a 45 degree angle. It then brightened and suddenly broke up into a bright orange fireball, or rather, many bright orange fireballs as it broke apart. It was gone as quick as it appeared, the whole thing couldn't have been more than two seconds, but it was spectacular. After driving for not long at all, in awe, I decided to switch the radio to the news station, WTOP. They were just beginning their 'traffic on the eights' at 4:48.

I was driving to the airport heading south into Boston Logan airport and saw a large green fireball heading towards the southeast at 4:45am

I was driving down route 40 between Myersville and Frederick at about 4:40am and I saw it! I was very suprised it was green as I was not aware meteors could be green.

I saw it at about 4:50 am. I live just outside Philadelphia.

I was just coming to the 70/270 merge when I saw it. Seemed to be a growing fireball for about 5 seconds until it finally disintegrated. That woke me up!

Saw it for 2-3 seconds in Northern Virginia (Clifton/Fairfax) at exactly 4:47 as well. Other searches this morning led to a local station in Wisconsin that said there were sightings around 4am CST. This thing must have been moving VERY quickly. Beautiful sight :)

FR: A 4 a.m. sighting in Central Time would be 3 a.m. Eastern. That was not the same object.

This just in via email from Cindy Lorenz: "I was traveling south on 795 toward 695.Shortly before 5AM, I was approaching the part of 795 that passes the mall on the right and Owings Mills metro station on the left, when I noticed a firey yellow ball w/ a tail traveling across the sky from the right (aka from the south?).It seemed to travel for about three to five seconds.As others have remarked, it was like nothing I had ever seen. I actually found myself slowing down, thinking it might land or explode on the road -- which I now realize was an illusion of distance! It seemed to burn out as it finished crossing my field of view and neared the horizon. Also like others, I was amazed at how large and slow-moving it seemed. Wow!"

I was driving on 276 in Philadelphia area headed east towards NJ TP and I saw this beautiful green light break up into a whole bunch of smaller ones and then of course fade off behind the trees. it appeared to be from southeast to east, but it couldve been anywhere. i know it was on my right side windshield area.

I saw this huge green streaking light shooting across the sky heading in a NE direction. I was heading East on Rt3 in NJ passing Montclaire going to work at 4:48am. I have never seen anything like this and was waiting for the meteor to hit the ground but never heard a sound.

Sighted green fireball at approximately 4:40 AM. Location in sky was just East of due South. Fireball was headed East in a diagonal line from say 20 degrees above horizon to 15 degrees above horizon. My location is 5 miles due East of Hamburg, PA.

I was sitting in my tollbooth at the Lincoln Tunnel and saw a green ball with a white curved tail shoot across the sky from west to east. It broke into two and dissapeared. Also, I know someone who was by the beach in south Jersey and saw it.

I saw it at 4:47 AM from Collegeville, PA (NW Phila suburb). Looked to me like it was headed from west to east ending up over Philadelphia, but from other posts, it must have been farther south.
This is the third fireball I have seen in my life - feel pretty lucky as they are spectacular!

I saw the green fireball at around 4:45AM in Upstate NY just outside of Saratoga Springs. It had no tail and was at about 30 degrees of elevation. I was driving to work and saw it for about 5 seconds before it went behind a tree. It looked like it was headed in a southerly direction and this blog confirms it.

I did see the green fireball this morning at 4:45 a.m. I was traveling eastbound on I-70
in between South mountain and Braddock mountain. I saw the fireball come from the right of my truck window to the left. It was approximately 5 seconds that it was in my sight. Also, it was at about a 45 degree angle. The most incredible thing I have ever seen. Also, why is it not on the news yet?

I saw the samething this morning around 4:45am. I was heading south on I-91 about 2 miles south of White River Jct. VT. It was the largest and slowest meteor I have seen. It was bright green with an orange-redish tail moving toward the west. I saw it for maybe a second and a half than it disappeared behind the mountains.

This morning I was driving east bound on route 17 in Middletown NY heading towards Goshen area. I saw a bright ball with a greenish hue coming out of the sky with a tail heading towards the ground. It was the most amazing thin I I've ever seen and when I came home from work I had my 24 year old daughter do some research on the computer to see if anyone else had seen the same thing and I came across this website. It was unbelieveable!

I saw it in westfield ma.@ 4:50 am 05/10/2010

I observed this meteor it was around 4:45-4:50 am. Leaving for work from Hickory, MD (north of Bel Air). It was a spectacular green-yellow fireball that was larger than any I have ever seen. It slowly started to fizzle out before breaking into smaller pieces. It was moving from SW to NE. Starting at about 35-40deg and moving toward the horizon. It was the most interesting astronomical event I have seen aside from the Northern Lights.

I was leaving my apartment this morning in Dundalk at about 4:45 am and the air was crisp and moon was clear, and there was another object to the right of the moon which may have been Venus. The meteor was green but was leaving bright white "sparklies" for lack of a better term in its trail. It was absolutely magnificent.

FR: Thanks. The bright object to the right of the moon, low in the east, was Jupiter. Venus is currently in the evening sky, in the west after sunset.

I was headed east on I-70, just on the east side of Frederick, MD, when I saw a green fireball slash across the southern sky (headed in what appeared to be a northeasterly direction) in front and to my right. It's tail was bright yellow, and was breaking up for the one to two seconds that I saw it. It then burned up well above the horizon, at perhaps 60 degrees (I'm guessing ... it was pretty early ... 4:45 AM). Spectacular sight. Never seen anything like it in my life.

I saw it @4:50am in Southampton MA

I was driving south on Rt 32 near Clarksville MD when I saw the meteor moving across the sky in a southeasterly direction at 4:47 am. It was a large bluish-green fireball with a long tail. I watched it for about 3-4 seconds before trees obscured my view. It was at an approx 40-45 degree elevation angle.

In Downingtown at 4:45 walking my dog east. Crossed the sky from north to south. from my location it appeared to disintegrate as it passed into the atmosphere. Very cool--great way to start the day.

So glad I found this blog. I thought I was the only one in my area to see it. NE philly, three to four secs tops, beautiful bright, almost fiery, green. Appeared to be over the Delaware or possibly Jersey. I was quite tickled,

I saw the meteor this morning. I was traveling south out of Orwigsburg, Pa. and saw it heading from NW to SE. As soon as it went over out of sight I looked at my clock. It was 4:48 am.

New Jersey...Heading to work at 4:48am today on Libertyville Road in Wantage,when the green meteor shot across the sky; couldn't believe how bright, large, and long I saw it travel for. It seemed like a few long seconds, when it disappeared, into what I thought was the ground. Never seen anything like it.....

I am so glad to find this sight. I was searching web all day to see if anyone else saw this amazing sight. I saw it at about 4:46 AM from Newtown, PA (an area north of Phili) My view was a SE vantage, it traveled east. It was large, very bright, long white tail with blue green head. it flew approx 8-13 sec.(definitely) from when I first noticed it. Then it broke up into pieces like fire works then went dark. Nothing blocked my view. It was awsome!

I have a question. I read about sightings at 4:00 am in Wisconsin. How can that be? if the east coast sightings were only about 45 min later. Does that calculate correct with the time difference from east coast and Wisconsin?

FR: The Wisconsin event was a different meteor.

i saw this thing while on my paper route at 430ish in the morning in the pocono mountains pa it went for about 4 to 5 seconds and was so bright it was unbelievable came down left to right about a 40 or 45 degree angle i would love to know where this landed it must have been huge

FR: Left to right? All other accounts have it going roughly west to east - right to left from your vantage point. And it's likely that little or nothing made it to the surface. If anything did, it would have been a scattering of quite small pieces. The original object could have been as small as a basketball.

I saw it on my way to work at Worldgate starbucks at around 4:45am, in Herndon, V.A.

I was on my way to work and I saw a orange and yellow fireball with a tail falling from the sky. I was headed SE on 140 from Westminster towards I795. It was 4:47 am, May 10th (Monday morning). It lasted about 3 seconds. It was awsome!
Never saw anything like it, it looked huge!

i was leaving Salisbury Md. around 4:30, (May 10) going down Dikes St. towards Toad Vine Ave. i saw a white light out of the corner of my right eye, right top of windshield. at first i thought it was a plane, it shot down to the left corner of the windshield and then as it got close to land it went puff and a green light came out all around it, like a fourth of July sparkler, of course my first thought was a shooting star.

debris from Haley's comet

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/36967785/ns/technology_and_science-space/

My wife and I were at mile marker 82 on the New York State Thruway and saw the same thing at 4:48 AM. We called 911 and reported it because we thought it may have been an aircraft breaking up. The fireball was like nothing we ever saw before!

Frank regarding the possible siting in Wisconsin. 4am central time would be equal to 5am here in the east. Our time zones move back from east to west. Central time is 1 hour behind us, Mountain time is 2hrs behind us, etc....

FR: You're right, of course. Brain wasn't fully engaged. There's still a difference of 15 minutes in the sightings, though. Assuming the times are accurate, that's still too long for them both to relate to the same meteor.

The Wisconsin meteor was apparently seen some 10 to 15 minutes after the Maryland meteor - astonishly close timing for such unusual events. Also odd, I'd think, is that both were moving in a generally west to east direction. Seems to me the more likely direction is east to west since the eastern horizon point in the direction that the earth is moving toward in the early morning. While not the same event, it seems unlikely that these two events are randomly coincidental.

FR: It's quite possible the two objects were part of a cluster of related objects, possibly from the same break-up event in the asteroid belt, or debris from a comet trail.

I was traveling south on Route 100 in PA about 2 miles north of Exton. At 4:45 a.m. I saw a wide streak of green light with a long tail, hard to judge how long it was. It looked very close (less than a mile from my vantage point) but apparently it was much farther away (MD). It went east to west at maybe a 20 degree angle. I saw it for approx. 5 seconds and then it burned out. Pretty cool.
A friend of mine about 20 miles north of my sighting told me that he saw 3 or 4 streaks of blue green and yellow also at 4:45 a.m.

FR: East to west? Are you sure? That's left to right - from the Atlantic to the mountains - as you drove south from Pa. That does not square with most other reports, which had the fireball traveling roughly west to east.

I was driving eastbound on 495 after getting of the 95S exit in college park @ ~4:50am. I first saw it towards the west as a big white ball of light and then it continued to the east until it broke up into 4 smaller pieces and then faded away at the horizon.

My partner saw this from our front porch in Crisfield, MD yesterday morning just after 4:45. Our porch faces East. She first saw it almost directly in front of her (due East), about a third or halfway from the horizon to the zenith. She last saw it when fell behind tall pine trees, farther to her left (north). She describes the color as yellow with reddish-orange around it.

My boyfriend and I were on I64 toward Richmond when we saw a fiery green comet-like thing as well. We couldn't tell if it was actually in our atmosphere or not, but it fell really fast! It was awesome!

"FR: East to west? Are you sure? That's left to right - from the Atlantic to the mountains - as you drove south from Pa. That does not square with most other reports, which had the fireball traveling roughly west to east."

I'm sorry, got confused thinking right to left would be east to west. But I was heading south, so yes, it was west to east.

FR: That works. Thanks.

I saw this..im in Bethlehem PA..on my way to work in Easton PA at the exact time...it was actually slow moving for a meteorite...really bright green...it kept coming in so much.I seriously thought it was gonna hit earth...that was the most spectacualar one Ive seen.

This just in via email from Tom Marquez; a letter to the American Meteor Society: "On my to work this morning, 10 May 2010, I observed what I believe was a meteor in the sky. Below are the particulars:

Date: 10 May 2010
Time: Approximately 0441 Eastern Standard Time
Location: Howard County, Columbia, MD
Specifics: a. Driving east bound on Route 32 just .25 miles from Interstate 95 exits
b. Noticed low in the eastern sky (approximate25 degrees) a very bright white light moving rapidly with a white-yellow tail, just prior to reaching appeared tree line object broke apart.
c. Duration approximately 3-4 seconds.
d. No sound heard, however was driven in car at time of observation.
e. Called Howard County, MD 911 to report observation at 0449, 10 May 2010

Hopefully above information will assist you in maintaining your meteor log.

Thomas J. Marquez"

This just in via email from Capt. Ed Spina: "I saw the meteor Monday morning and just googled it today and found you and the Baltimore Sun article. Though you might like some more information on the event.

I live in the lower Hudson Valley and was driving to work when the meteor passed. I was driving south on the Palisades Parkway which is on the west side of the Hudson River. I was about 3 miles north of the entrance to the George Washington Bridge which crosses the Hudson
and puts you on the northern tip of Manhattan. As it passed from
west to east I could actually see what appeared to be a bright blueish flame at the head followed a more yellow/whitish tail. As you mentioned in the article it appeared to be very close, but it is hard to tell. I am an airline pilot and have been fortunate enough to see quite a few meteors especially at night and this was one of the
closest passes I have see in years. I always wonder where they land.
But given that the earth is covered by 75% water and it was heading east and that it was sighted as far east as Massachusetts I say it probably hit the Atlantic somewhere the east of Cape Cod.

But it was a great show while it lasted!

Eyes ever skyward,

Ed Spina
B767 Captain"

We saw it too, were coming back from the Catskills heading south on 17 about 35 miles north of New York and it shot right to left, looking very low, and looking like a green firework...a thing of beauty, we felt very privileged..

This just in via email from Glenn Gardner : "Just to let you know, I was driving to work (Washington, DC) from Woodbridge, Va., and that meteor was even south of me. That thing may have been pretty big. - Glenn G."

I saw it on my way to Washington National Airport driving on I-70E, before getting onto the 29 going south. What an awesome sight as it blazed through the sky with the crescent moon just beyond it in the background! It was so bright and big as it streaked through the sky! It had a big tail! ...Glad you posted this because I thought I might be seeing things!

Me again...Forgot to tell you it was about 4:46AM. It was a little lower than the moon...Saw it for only 1 sec because of the trees...

I saw it while standing on my deck in Sicklerville, NJ letting the dog out at about 4:47 am. It seemed to be headed in a northeastly direction. Big blue ball with a flaming yellow/reddish tail. From where I was standing I could see it travel along the treeline for about 3-4 seconds before disappearing. It seemed so close that after it passed I actually looked in the direction it was going to see if I could spot a crash-landing blaze. One of the most awesomely beautiful things I have ever seen.

I came down 68 E. thru Sideling hill, in western Washington County. It was Big. My first thought was there was going to be a big fire when I get on the other side of the mountain. But there was none. It was moving fast. I saw green and white colors. At that time in the morning there is not alot of traffic and there is minimal ground lights. More importantly it was not in "outer space" where you see the north star, it was very, very close. Close to the mountain tops.

FR: The "closeness" is an illusion. The meteor is very bright, moving very fast. Our brain does the calculations based on more familiar objects (like airplanes) and estimates it to be much closer than it really is. Folks on the Eastern Shore saw it to their south and east. Yes, it's much closer than the fixed stars. It's in the Earth's atmosphere, but usually scores or hundreds of miles away.

I live in Phila, right across from N.J. I was heading to work aroud 4:45am on monday 5/10/10. This blue-green object came out of the sky from the south and i swear I thought it was going to hit somewhere in N.J. But it disappear so fast. Thanks , nobody believed a word I said when I came to work

Saw at the same time as everyone else heading due south on Rt. 146 in central Mass. Coincidentally I was heading to TF Green airport in Providence for an early 620 am flight to Baltimore where most of the other sitings were. I was so impressed by it that I opened my car widow to see if I could hear it impact. Large slow moving green ball that developed a tail as it got closer to horizon. I would have guessed impact to south of Cape Cod or RI.

I just saw the same thing you guys are describing, BUT AT 11:03 PM MOUNTAIN STANDARD TIME (CO)!!!! Heading was NE. Busy season for meteors? Or is it something else?...

My friend call me at about 4;40 am on 5/10/2010 and told me he had seen a ball of what looked like fire with a tail fall from the sky in the mt. airy ,maryland area. He said it was unbelievable and had to call and tell someone.

Hey this is entirely to late of a post.. but my fiance and I were heading back from Pourkipsee NY on July 29 2010 and saw the same exact thing flying out of the sky going towad Matamoris PA. It was about 11 o'clock at night. I hope some comes across this, we are looking for some feedback

I just came across this site and I wanted to post my awesome experience seeing TWO Meteor fireballs in one night!!!! I was in Ocean City, MD around April 23rd whenever the Kite Festival was going on, and my fiance and I went for a walk around the nieghborhood on a Friday or Saturday night around 10ish, when all of a sudden I saw a orangey/green fireball in the sky almost exactly like the one pictured. It was making a sound and then after a few seconds it burned out.. I was blown away by the sight, because I've never seen that before in my life. Then we walked around the block and on the other side of the horizon - my fiance and I were lucky enough to see another fireball streaking in the sky. Again it was bright and orangey/green looking. We were completely amazed that having never seen that in our entire lives, we happened to see TWO in one night within the span of about 5mins. Funny thing, is they both came from different angles in the sky. It was truly an awesome experience, we forgot what we was fighting about earlier!!! lol

I spotted this last night at around 9:50, this was Tuesday December 14, 2010. I was pulling up to a stop sign that intersected with Liberty Rd. in Randallstown, MD when I looked up and I saw this. It only lasted about 2 seconds before it went behind a few trees. I thought it was a meteorite but the color was too strange so I researched and found nothing...except something about green fireballs. This site was quite interesting.

FR: The object you saw was not the same one described in this post, which was posted in May 2010.

spotted a large green meteor tonight approx 650pm moving east to west lasting about 6 sec. with a shower of green sparks following my location 5 miles south of Pocomoke City Md.

I sighted a few meteors earlier this week that were also green but two of them were orange, ive never seen anything like it in my entire life, and then after that i saw two planes and a helicopter flying around at high altitude,I live in Amarillo, Texas in the middle of the Texas panhandle, please email me if you have any information. thanks.

I saw the green comet in Toledo, OH around 12:00 am!!

This is great finding this site. I travel alot from new Orleans to west tx I've seen 3 green fire balls with in one week around June 20 2011. One was over the city Metairie la as I was crossing the cause way bridge towards the city then the next day was on my way to midland tx as your going around the wind mills it was falling south east and the other was as I got to midland tx right out side the hotel. The sky was perfect for it the hotel sits off the interstate around nothing else and the fire ball lite up the sky

Did anyone see a softball size orange fire ball over Herndon, Va about 12:20 am? I was sitting on my back deck talking to a friend from Atlanta on my cell & was in awe of what I was seeing. All of a sudden it was just there moving fast and went down behind the huge trees behind our town homes. I was unable to see if it landed because the view was blocked by the town houses and the end of our street. It look to be within a mile or 2 from where I was sitting. I know someone else had to have seen this!!! Very exciting!!!

We just had one pass by our house tonight at 7:45pm going southeast. Bright green with a tail of gold! Really neat to see!

FR REPLIES: Where are you? Maine? China? Australia? No point reporting without more information. Thanks.

At almost exactlly 4:23 am I was driving south bound I95 before exit 85 and observed large green fire ball south / southeast. It was much larger than anything I've seen before. It disappear from my view to the southeast because of trees. It was seemed so large I was waiting on the sound of an impact. Had to make a correction. it moved down to the southwest of my position.