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Updated: 11:10 AM Nov 18, 2009
Extremely Bright Flash Overnight Likely Caused By Meteor
People in northern Nevada got quite an eyeful late Tuesday night as an intense flash lit-up the sky for 2 to 3 seconds around 11:07 p.m. Pacific Time.
Posted: 1:55 AM Nov 18, 2009Video Included Reporter: Staff Email Address: news@kolotv.com |
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23 Comments 
RENO, Nevada (KOLOTV.com) -- People in northern Nevada got quite an eyeful late Tuesday night as an intense flash lit-up the sky for 2 to 3 seconds around 11:07 p.m. Pacific Time.
The KOLO 8 News Now staff fielded numerous calls just after the flash. We've also received a few e-mails.
It appears that the bright flash was an exploding meteor that could be seen in Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, Idaho, and Nevada. Space Weather says the meteor exploded with a force equivalent to 1/2 - 1 kilotons of TNT. Space Weather also says that this meteor does not appear to be associated with the Leonids.
The Earth is currently passing through the Leonids, an annual meteor shower. Link to a related story.
Reports from Salt Lake say that the meteor was so bright, it turned off some light sensitve street lamps.
The Spectrum, which is a newspaper in southern Utah & owned by the same company as the Reno Gazette-Journal, reports that many people in that state also saw an extremely bright flash around the same time.
One local woman who sent an e-mail to the KOLO newsroom wrote:
"I live in Dayton ... When I was coming home I saw in the sky something that looked like a shooting star. But as it got closer to land it got bigger and brighter. It [had] a bluish/greenish trail behind it. But when it hit land it lit up the whole sky." [edited for grammar]
We would like to know what YOU saw. Please let us know what you were doing at the time, what you thought the flash might've been, and any other interesting details. Leave us a comment just below.
Latest Comments
My husband and I are happy to know that he is not crazy! He is a truck driver and was out that way and called me what would have been about five minutes after it happened. He said it was like daylight out for a few seconds. I got freaked and slept with our lights on sure there was an impending attack or something. I have been researching for almost a year now and have finally come across this! (Guess I wasn't using the right words!LOL) The only thing that doesn't make any sense is that he talked on his cb to the truckers driving around him and noone saw it. Plus someone said something over the cb like, that was something special and when he asked other's about it they had no idea what he was talking about. makes ya wonder!
i live in dillon colorado and saw the sky light up like day for about three seconds around midnight. was cool as beans
was standing in the parking lot of zabriskie point in death valley national park when i saw the ENTIRE sky light up, silouhetting the mountains north north east of my location. my heart raced. i expected to hear an explosion. i thought, perhaps nellis afb was doing something. then thought it was part of the leonids, even though we were far past the peak time. turns out it most likely was a leonid. i'm sorry i missed the actual trail, but the sky slowly lighting up then suddenly exploding in photons was a pretty amazing consolation prize! wish i'd seen the whole thing... if anyone has any footage of the actual fireball, please post! looks like one posting was removed?
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