Watch fireball light up the night sky in vivid blue as it blazes over California

A home security video shows a bluish fireball burning across the night sky over San Diego, where other cameras also captured views of the apparent meteor.

The American Meteor Society received 16 reports of fireball sightings from San Diego, Los Angeles, other parts of California, Nevada and Arizona at about 2:30 a.m. Friday, June 23.

People sent in four videos and one photo showing the fireball.

Some observers reported hearing a “whoosh” or a “loud pop then a boom.” Others said the fireball appeared more greenish to them.

It’s not clear what caused the fireball, although the society reports three smaller active meteor showers at the moment. The next big meteor showers are due in July and August.

NASA defines fireballs, also called bolides, as “exceptionally bright meteors that are spectacular enough to to be seen over a very wide area.”

Meteors, known as shooting stars, “are the visible paths of meteoroids that have entered the Earth’s atmosphere at high velocities.” Fireballs can result when meteors larger than about 3 feet enter the atmosphere.

Fireballs that appear to explode are called bolides, although the terms are interchangeable.

This story was originally published June 25, 2023 at 1:47 PM with the headline "Watch fireball light up the night sky in vivid blue as it blazes over California."