UTV News - Ireland's blazing fireball 'huge event'

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Ireland's blazing fireball 'huge event'

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Sightings of a fireball blazing across the sky were reported across the island of Ireland on Wednesday night.
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Astronomy Ireland said people north and south witnessed the spectacle, which happened at around 6pm.

It is thought the fireball was a space rock travelling at a 100,000 miles per hour, or the equivalent of a small atomic bomb blast in the skies.

David Moore of Astronomy Ireland said: "This is a huge event."

Mr Moore said those who saw it were facing inland at the time which indicated it landed on ground and not at sea.

One man in Co Kildare who witnessed it said he thought it was an aeroplane coming out of the sky.

Valentia Coastguard said it received several calls ranging from Co Kerry, to the midlands and Northern Ireland over the sightings.

The last time a meteorite hit Ireland was in 1999 and the rock was retrieved in Co Carlow.

It sold for $500 per gram, and Astronomy Ireland is urging anyone with sightings to record it on their website. Meteorites are fragments of rock that fall to Earth from space.

Having broken away from a larger body, they can measure anything from a fraction of a millimetre to the size of a football pitch and bigger.

As they enter the earth's atmosphere they glow due to the friction and flash across the sky before crashing to the ground.

Did you witness the event? Post your fireball pictures/footage on our Facebook or Twitter pages (TwitPic your snaps @UTV)

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At 17:10 on 05 February 2010, DD wrote:
I was driving north and saw a green fireball between 7 and 7:30 pm Los Angeles time. The light was travelling from the northwest to northeast direction. I have seen no reports from locals here however, there was a brief report on 1070 am radio and no mention after that. Due to the time discrepency I'm not sure if this was the same one.
At 16:17 on 04 February 2010, brenda wrote:
my son and i saw it. at first i thought it was just a shooting star but it then went on fire so i knew it had entered the atmosphere. it was amazing!!
At 15:36 on 04 February 2010, jackie wrote:
me and my friend were standing out side our front doors when we saw a fire ball falling from the sky it was going really fast
At 14:54 on 04 February 2010, Andrew Lennox wrote:
I also saw a fire ball on wednesday night around 6 o clock. It was in Magherafelt going acorss to glenshane. It made the sky go green and when it came down it ture the sky red.
At 14:29 on 04 February 2010, jason wrote:
i was driving along the glenshane pass when i saw a white blue green red object moving realy fast in the sky. though it was a burning air plane. was an amazing sight. told every one at home about it. then seen it on the rte news an 9 oclock.
At 14:25 on 04 February 2010, gerii wrote:
From UTV Twitter feed: @utv I seen it coming down, it was bright green, flaring, low on horz, slow and lasted 7secs. Seen NW from Car in Louth, Northbound on M1 :)
At 14:19 on 04 February 2010, Patricia wrote:
I also witnessed the fire ball wednesday night around 6 o clock it was bright green in colour
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