A ball of light was seen shooting across the sky over Phoenix, Arizona, at around 8.30 pm on November 15. Soon, people branded it as a UFO sighting or sign of alien invasion. Now, astronomers have clarified that the brilliant streak was "almost certainly" a meteor.
The phenomenon was recorded by the city of Phoenix in one of its observation cameras. They posted it on Twitter, sparking extra-terrestrial rumors worldwide. The video showed a large ball of light moving swiftly across the sky and fading into the horizon, while a smaller light beacon was seen in the lower part of the frame.
Following the event, the American Meteor Society received more than 100 reports from places like Arizona, California, New Mexico, Nevada and Utah, reports AZ Central.
"Given the speed and everything, this was almost certainly a meteor rather than a piece of space junk," said curator of Arizona State University's Center for Meteorite Studies Laurence Garvie. He estimates the size of the meteor to be about five feet across.
The American Meteor Society has stated that it was a 'bolide' meteor, which explodes in a bright terminal flash. Its glow was extraordinarily bright but it broke very quickly.
"The meteor is probably larger than a marble and smaller than a human. Around a football size," said astronomer Nick Moskovitz from the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff. Reportedly, there was debris from the meteor between Flagstaff and Phoenix, east of Interstate 17.
These statements highlight how quickly human beings jump to alien stories as soon as they glimpse something out of the ordinary. Although there is no conclusive proof of alien existence, many people believe that Earth is awaiting an alien invasion. Only time will tell whether the theorists are right or it is just our own planet which holds undiscovered secrets.
