Initially we thought it was a sky lantern, but it was bigger than a sky lantern and was travelling too quick to be a sky lantern. Also it was only one object but was continually fragmenting as it moved across the sky from east to west and the time was 11 as we noted it down. A magical experience and one never to be forgotten no matter whether it was a meteoride or space junk!
Location
Address
Magherafelt (UK)
Latitude
54° 44' 37.75'' N (54.74382°)
Longitude
6° 37' 15.77'' W (-6.621047°)
Elevation
-
Time and Duration
Local Date & Time
2012-09-21 23:00 GMT
UT Date & Time
2012-09-21 22:00 UT
Duration
≈10s
Direction
Moving direction
From up to down
Descent Angle
180°
Moving
Facing azimuth
91.472°
First azimuth
91.01651°
First elevation
39°
Last azimuth
268.6965°
Last elevation
33°
Brightness and color
Stellar Magnitude
-9
Color
orange/yellow
Concurrent Sound
Observation
No
Remarks
-
Delayed Sound
Observation
No
Remarks
-
Persistent train
Observation
Unknown
Duration
-1s
Length
-1°
Remarks
-
Terminal flash
Observation
No
Remarks
Initially we saw the orange/yellow fireball coming straight toward us from the east so it wasn\'t for a few seconds that we realised fragments of the fireball were coming off behind it and glowing orange. The fireball continued to fragment as it passed overhead and headed west. The fireball faded from view after something like 30 seconds in the sky and eventually looked white in colour rather than red as we lost sight of it in the west.
