Fireball in the sky reported across Washington, British Columbia, and Oregon

ANACORTES, Wash. — Dozens of people on social media are asking, “What was that?” after seeing something strange falling from the sky overnight.

What some described as a bright flash in the sky early Wednesday morning was reported in parts of the Pacific Northwest.

As of 8 p.m., the American Meteor Society (AMS) had received 135 reports of a fireball seen across Washington, British Columbia, and Oregon.

The AMS classifies a fireball as a “very bright meteor.” The event is caused when a small piece of debris in space soars into the Earth’s atmosphere typically between 20,000 and 30,000 miles per hour. When the debris hits the atmosphere it “superheats,” according to experts, which then causes the trail of bright, exploding lights people see.

Dr. Chris Laws, a teaching professor of astronomy at the University of Washington, told KOMO News that fireballs are fairly common, but he said they can happen over oceans or in the daylight, so they often go undetected.

“No place on Earth is either safe or particularly likely to get hit,” Laws explained.

The astronomical event was recorded on a camera in Anacortes, among other places, at about 12:15 a.m. Wednesday. That video was provided to KOMO News.

It shows a blue-green object falling from the sky before appearing to explode in a flash of bright light.

The green color is common with fireballs, Laws said, because of elements like magnesium and nickel found in the debris.

Laws also confirmed that fireballs are not dangerous because it’s very rare debris hits the ground intact.

After KOMO received the video, Meteorologist George Waldenberger immediately started scanning reports from the AMS, which showed that dozens of people had reported seeing a fireball or light. The Washington locations the reports came from included:

AnacortesBelfairBremertonCamanoClinton SpokaneEast WenatcheeEllensburgFriday HarborGig HarborHockinsonLiberty LakeMount VernonOak HarborOlympiaPort OrchardRoche HarborRosburgSeabeckSeattleSequimSpokaneTieton

The reports said the event lasted from 1.5 to 7.5 seconds, but most estimated it as 3.5.

Waldenberger said what was seen was likely a meteor, which can explode and break apart as it falls and make a larger flash.

Some people on Reddit even reported hearing sounds during the phenomenon.

At some point, the AMS will verify what exactly people saw. The AMS will also likely be able to analyze where in space the debris came from, how high up in Earth’s atmosphere the debris blew up, and the actual path of the meteor.

If you saw the fireball in the sky and have video, upload it to Chime In.