Kielder observatory news
FIREBALL!!!!! So, who saw it? Wow, what an event - I will never forget it. At 21:41 on Saturday 3rd March 2012,
I was on the deck with 30 Observatory guests setting up the telescope to look at Mars, when one guest exclaimed "What on Earth is THAT?!".
We all stared up and watched as an incredible bright object with a long tail appeared from the North horizon and travelled slowly across the whole sky towards the Southern horizon. I have never seen anything like it: when it appeared it was like a diamond, so bright we almost had to look away, and it cast shadows on the ground as it moved. We stood in amazement as the colours changed from green and bright white to yellow and then, as it disappeared over the Southern horizon, a deep orange. Usually, meteors appear for a few seconds and travel so quickly, breaking up, so that we hardly have time to take them in - this one took a minute to cross the sky. I even started to feel worried "This could be serious..." - this meteor could have been as big as a car and it didn't seem to break up at all. I wonder where it landed... I hear that the trajectory suggests there's a possibility it's landed in South Wales, but sadly, more likely in the sea. A once-in-a-lifetime experience. Wow. Get in touch if you saw it, we'd love to hear your stories! Also, watch BBC Sky At Night this evening on BBC 1 23:35 to see Kielder and Kielder Star Camp!
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