Several flashes of light and loud bangs over large parts of Eastern Norway on Sunday night are apparently due to a meteor.
It is currently uncertain where the meteor, or meteor shower, may have landed.
Norwegian meteor network writes that they will work throughout the day analyzing videos to determine where the meteor fell and where it came from.
– Preliminary calculations indicate that it fell over Finnemarka between Modum and Lier, and that it is possible that parts have fallen to the ground like meteorites, they say.
Morten Bilet in the Norwegian meteor network says VG that this is probably a large meteor and that this is rare.
– It most likely came in from the asteroid belt, between Mars and Jupiter. It could be iron, and it could be stones, we do not know yet, he says.
Sunday morning The Norwegian Meteor Network writes the following on its website:
«An unusually large meteor was visible last night over large parts of southern Scandinavia and gave a powerful flash of light over Eastern Norway. Many also heard a roaring sound afterwards. The meteor appeared at 01:08:47 the night of July 25 and was visible for approx. 5 seconds.»
From Halden in the south to Eidsvoll in the north
The Eastern police district first reported a number of inquiries from people about loud bangs, lights and possible emergency flares, but it is all probably due to a meteor that has passed over Eastern Norway.
The police have received reports from Halden in the south to Eidsvoll in the north.
The Southeast Police District and the Inland Police District also report very many reports.
The incident occurred a few minutes after 1 o’clock on Sunday night.
Huge bangs and bright light
Observations are also reported on Evje outside Kristiansand, which indicates that it has had a path from north to south.
The flashes of light were followed by what many describe as huge bangs. The flash of light was so powerful that for many it was experienced as almost daylight.
Several video clips from the event that are shared online show this.
Probably a meteor
“The extremely powerful light that was seen over Eastern Norway precisely, followed by bouldering and a smoke trail, was probably a huge meteor,” writes astrophysicist Eirik Newth on Twitter.
According to Newth, observations of meteors are not uncommon in themselves.
“It is only rare that they walk directly over such densely populated areas on a summer night when many are up,” he writes.
Intense red color
“Several observations report intense red color that becomes lighter and changes to white before it dissolves,” says the Main Rescue Center Southern Norway, which has also received several reports of the incident.
A meteor is a glowing strip of light of air and gas in the sky. The phenomenon occurs when a body from space, a meteoroid, enters the Earth’s atmosphere.
If it does not burn completely, but hits the ground, it is called a meteorite.
(©NTB)
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