American Meteor Society
Nearly 150 reports from 8 States
The AMS received nearly 150 reports and many spectacular videos displaying a fireball event that occurred over Indiana and surrounding states on Friday July 22, 2022, at 01:52 AM EDT. The AMS #2022-4188 event was mainly seen from Indiana, but we also received reports from Ohio, Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa, Missouri, Kentucky, and northern Alabama. The initial computer generated trajectory shows that this fireball entered the atmosphere over Advance, Indiana and its flight ended near Burlington, Indiana. Both of these towns lie just northwest of Indianapolis. There are no reports of loud booms with this event, which indicate that the fireball completely disintegrated while still high in the atmosphere.
A fireball is a meteor that is larger and brighter than normal. Most meteors are only the size of tiny pebbles. A meteor the size of a softball can produce light equivalent to the full moon for a short instant. The reason for this is the extreme velocity at which these objects strike the atmosphere. Even the slowest meteors are still traveling at 10 miles per SECOND, which is much faster than any round fired from a firearm. Fireballs occur every day over all parts of the Earth. We normally receive about 100 reports each day. It is rare though for an individual to see more than one or two per lifetime as these short-lived events also occur during the day, on a cloudy night, or over a remote area where no one sees it. Observing during one of the major annual meteor showers can increase your chance of seeing another one of these bright meteors. The next major annual meteor shower will occur on the night of 12/13 August 2022, when the Perseid meteor shower reaches maximum activity.
If you witnessed this event and/or if you have a video or a photo of this event, please
Submit an Official Fireball Report
If you want to learn more about Fireballs: read our Fireball FAQ.
The map below displays just how widely this object was visible over Midwestern USA. Fireballs can become visible at altitudes near 100 miles, allowing them to be visible over a large area. Visit the event page for this fireball to view the videos and read comments from the witnesses.
Fireball, Bolide?
Several thousand meteors of fireball magnitude occur in the Earth’s atmosphere each day. The vast majority of these, however, occur over the oceans and uninhabited regions, and a good many are masked by daylight. Those that occur at night also stand little chance of being detected due to the relatively low numbers of persons out to notice them.
Additionally, the brighter the fireball, the more rare is the event. As a general thumb rule, there are only about 1/3 as many fireballs present for each successively brighter magnitude class, following an exponential decrease. Experienced observers can expect to see only about one fireball of magnitude -6 (crescent moon) or better for every 200 hours of meteor observing, while a fireball of magnitude -4 (Venus) can be expected about once every 20 hours or so.
I was laying in bed and saw a cluster of three fireballs out my tall window. Very bright! I knew I saw something!
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These Bolides might be from Comet Leonard which disintegrated earlier in February. Astronomers have no way of tracking the smaller debris of a disintegrating comet and were speculating that the following annual meteor shower display might be enhanced as a result.
I live in southern West Virginia and it’s now the 9th of Aug. 5:01 am and I came in to research what I saw, I think it’s a fire ball part of this latest meteor shower, It was in the southern direction traveling south and huge and bright white streak of light/ fire I reckon. Really neat though, God’s great place:)
This morning at approximately 7:30 a.m saw a meteor or fireball to n nw of Oroville,California.
. If I had to guess I’d say it was headed to Redding CA. No boom.
I was at my twin sisters in Clinton Indiana when she caught the fireball on her security camera. In fact this fireballs flight did NOT end in Burlington, Indiana and it also did NOT disintegrate. It crashed by my sisters house and I have it!!!!