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According to the European Space Agency, the meteor was first observed on Sunday evening. (Instagram\/@maltyzov_d)<\/p>\nA plane passenger departing from Brussels captured a dramatic meteor explosion outside his plane window, describing the moment as both breathtaking and frightening. The incident occurred on March 8 during takeoff, when a bright object suddenly streaked across the sky before bursting into an intense flash of light.<\/p>\n
According to the European Space Agency, the meteor was first observed on Sunday evening. (Instagram\/@maltyzov_d)<\/p>\n
The video was shared on Instagram by Denis Maltyzov, who said he was filming a time-lapse through the window when the rare event unfolded. \u201cI\u2019m still a bit shaken while writing this. During takeoff on flight SN2589 from Brussels, I suddenly noticed a very bright object in the sky not far from our plane,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n
Maltyzov said that the object flashed and appeared to explode moments later. \u201cAt 18:53, it flashed and then seemed to explode in an intense burst of light. I fly quite often, but this is the first time in my life I\u2019ve genuinely felt scared on a plane,\u201d he added. For a few seconds, he said, he thought something had exploded close to the aircraft.<\/p>\n
Watch the video below:<\/p>\n
Maltyzov said that the captain later mentioned that the bright flash might have been debris burning up in the atmosphere. He also said that witnesses across Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, France and Luxembourg also reported seeing the spectacle.<\/p>\n
\u201cScientists say it was most likely a small asteroid a few meters wide entering Earth\u2019s atmosphere and breaking up about 50 km above the ground,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Reflecting on the experience, Maltyzov said the sight left him awestruck. \u201cSo what I saw from the airplane window was most likely a meteor entering Earth\u2019s atmosphere. A rock that traveled billions of kilometers through space and burned up right in front of my eyes,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n
Fireball over Europe<\/p>\n
According to the European Space Agency, the meteor was first observed on Sunday evening as it streaked through the sky above the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate before exploding in a bright airburst that lasted several seconds. The agency\u2019s Planetary Defence team estimated the original object may have been a few metres in diameter before disintegrating high in the atmosphere.<\/p>\n