Incredible dashcam footage captured the moment a massive fireball shot across the sky in Texas.
Texans may have spotted a bright light zipping through the darkness Tuesday night around 7 p.m., according to KXAN, which obtained footage of the phenomenon.
The footage shows what appears to be a fireball darting over a busy roadway in Leander, a suburb north of Austin.
The American Meteor Society received several reports of fireballs — another term for a very bright meteor — appearing across different parts of the state Tuesday night.
The increased activity comes during the Geminid meteor shower, which is set to peak on Saturday.
Fireballs are caused by meteoroids burning up in Earth’s atmosphere, creating a notable luminous trail in their path.
According to NASA, they are significant because they are bright enough to be seen over a very wide area. The unusually bright meteors are generally brighter than magnitude -4, which is about the same magnitude as the planet Venus.
Several thousand meteors of fireball magnitude occur in the Earth’s atmosphere every day, according to the American Meteor Society. Despite their frequency, most take place over the oceans and uninhabited regions, and many are even masked due to daylight.
The American Meteor Society encourages those who witness these memorable events to report it. The group says when reporting fireballs, it is important to note details about its brightness, length, color and duration.
