Spectacular Flaming Space Debris Confuses Skywatchers Amid Orionid Meteor Shower

A “bright, long-lasting” fireball that sailed over Highland, Michigan, in the early morning of October 20, coinciding with the peak of the Orionid meteor shower, was in fact a fragmented satellite reentering the atmosphere, NASA said.

According to NASA, the “bright, long-lasting” fireball that flew over US midwestern states was not caused by a natural object, but rather by the “reentry and fragmentation of a satellite.”

The Orionid meteor shower is visible in the night sky each year from October 2 to November 7, according to EarthSky. Credit: Aimee Manning via Storyful