My wife witnessed it, too. We were both quite surprised by it since it was still daylight, especially when the secondary (fragment) ball of fire broke off.
Location
Address
La Mesa, CA
Latitude
32° 46' 50.41'' N (32.78067°)
Longitude
117° 1' 59.57'' W (-117.033214°)
Elevation
160.807m
Time and Duration
Local Date & Time
2017-05-21 18:17 PDT
UT Date & Time
2017-05-22 01:17 UT
Duration
≈7.5s
Direction
Moving direction
From up left to down right
Descent Angle
135°
Moving
Facing azimuth
327.75°
First azimuth
316.88°
First elevation
45°
Last azimuth
329.15°
Last elevation
29°
Brightness and color
Stellar Magnitude
-19
Color
Orange, Yellow, Red
Concurrent Sound
Observation
No
Remarks
-
Delayed Sound
Observation
No
Remarks
-
Persistent train
Observation
Yes
Duration
5s
Length
20°
Remarks
The train was very long and bright, brighter than a contrail in a clear sky, and it was orange-red. At the start was a bright orange-red ball of fire.
Terminal flash
Observation
No
Remarks
-
Fragmentation
Observation
Yes
Remarks
Half-way up the train was another bright-orange ball of fire that appeared to have broken off from the main fireball. It seemed to fall slower for some reason.
