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Meteor Likely Cause of Canadian ‘Fireball’

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Markus Harvey snapped this incredible photo of the night sky over Maugerville NB. It was taken in the fall of 2009. Read more: http://atlantic.ctvnews.ca/mysterious-light-seen-in-the-sky-over-maritimes-1.1734081#ixzz2wK26Fkw0

[caption id="attachment_81700" align="aligncenter" width="620"]Markus Harvey snapped this incredible photo of the night sky over Maugerville NB. It was taken in the fall of 2009. Read more: http://atlantic.ctvnews.ca/mysterious-light-seen-in-the-sky-over-maritimes-1.1734081#ixzz2wK26Fkw0 Meteor Likely Cause of Canadian ‘Fireball’
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At approximately 5 a.m. on Tuesday, March 18, a fireball filled the morning dark sky with light over Canada's Maritime provinces and areas of Quebec.

Accounts given by witnesses to Director David Lane of Saint Mary's University Burke-Gaffney Observatory in Halifax have led the astronomer to believe that it was an “extra-bright meteor.”

Lane stated to the press that although there's approximately 100 tons of materials that enters our planet's atmosphere daily, it's unlikely that a sizable rock or debris will be found because the potential impact areas are heavily wooded and near the ocean. Only one meteorite has ever been found in the Maritimes. The "Benton Meteorite" was found in Benton, New Brunswick in 1949.

[caption id="attachment_81699" align="aligncenter" width="620"]A Nova Scotia Webcams' image captured a bright light in the sky near the Masstown Market. The group said the image isn't as bright as it would have been to the human eye. (Nova Scotia Webcams) A Nova Scotia Webcams' image captured a bright light in the sky near the Masstown Market. The group said the image isn't as bright as it would have been to the human eye. (Nova Scotia Webcams)
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Lane compared any search for potential fireball debris to the ongoing search for the missing Malaysia Airlines flight. He explained that astronomers would need additional information, including direct line-of-sight accounts of the fireball's path, to triangulate location.

Many witnesses heard rumbling and thunder-like sounds during the event. Some have told the press that it was like the sun falling or a piece of metal on fire. They also described seeing different colors, including yellow, red, green and blue.

Keswick Valley Fire Department Captain Dan Roy saw the fireball while travelling home in New Brunswick and described seeing “sparks and flames” before it disappeared.

Metal within the object or a metal "space junk" fragment could have caused the colors and heightened brightness upon descent. It's unknown whether the object was one of the tens of thousands of pieces floating above Earth or what factors beyond gravity prompted the object to be pulled from orbit into our atmosphere.

The International Space Station was also above the area at the time. It even had to be relocated on Sunday because of hazardous debris.

yellowstone fireball

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Onlien:
http://www.theprovince.com/technology/Eyewitness+reports+fireball+over+Maritimes+likely+meteorite/9631479/story.html
http://au.ibtimes.com/articles/543932/20140319/meteor-nasa-canada-sky-space-astronomy-iss.htm
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/fireball-over-maritimes-quebec-likely-a-meteor-1.2576708
http://news.nationalpost.com/2014/03/18/light-in-the-sky-fireball-that-streaked-over-northern-maritimes-quebec-was-likely-a-meteorite/

Sean is a London (Ontario) based writer, and has been writing full-time for eCanadaNow since May of 2005, covering Canadian topics and world issues. Since 2009, Sean has been the lead editor for eCanadaNow. Prior to his work writing and editing for the eCanadaNow, he worked as a freelancer for several Canadian newspapers.. You can contact Sean at {Sean at ecanadanow.com] Google

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