April 8, 2026, 12:46 p.m. ET
Another meteor was noticed streaking throughout the sky above components of the jap United States for over 100 miles, main a number of cities and states to see the fireball on April 7.
The meteor handed over the northeastern a part of the nation round 2:34 p.m. ET, according to NASA, which additionally described it as a fireball. People in Connecticut, Delaware, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania reported seeing the fireball to the American Meteor Society round that point.
The April 7 meteor marks the newest in a sequence of asteroids in the environment which were seen on Earth as they disintegrate. Here’s what we all know.
Where was the meteor?
An evaluation of the eyewitness accounts and accessible cameras in the world locations the primary visibility of the meteor 48 miles above the Atlantic Ocean off the shore of Mastic Beach on Long Island, New York, NASA said.
The meteor was shifting southwest at 30,000 miles per hour and traveled 117 miles by means of the higher environment earlier than disintegrating 27 miles above the city of Galloway north of Atlantic City, New Jersey, in accordance with NASA.
The American Meteor Society’s report reveals eyewitnesses strewn all through the East Coast, together with into jap Pennsylvania. The society acquired 266 experiences in regards to the fireball in addition to seven movies and 9 images.
Other meteor sightings in 2026
The newest meteor sighting comes after different fireballs have been noticed in different components of the nation, together with on the West Coast, in the Midwest and in Texas.
March marked a month filled with fireballs lighting up the sky, with sightings of various occasions reported in California, Nevada, Washington, Oregon, Texas, Ohio, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, the District of Columbia and in Ontario, Canada.
On March 17, a “loud boom” was heard over northeast Ohio after a unique, six-ton fireball was noticed in the Northeast U.S. and in Canada, in accordance to USA TODAY’s previous reporting. Another meteor, weighing a couple of ton, left behind a souvenir after traveling throughout Texas skies on March 21, dropping particles by means of a neighborhood resident’s roof and ceiling.
What is a meteor?
A meteor, like a comet or asteroid, is an area rock that orbits the solar. The distinction between the three lies each in how shut it involves earth and what it is primarily product of, according to NASA.
While an asteroid is a small, rocky object usually discovered in orbit of Mars and Jupiter and a comet is an area object product of ice and dirt, meteors are a results of an area rock getting into Earth’s environment. Often referred to as “shooting stars,” meteors come from meteoroids – small, usually pebble-sizes items that break off of asteroids or comets. When a meteoroid enters Earth’s environment, it turns into a meteor. Because they enter the environment at such a excessive velocity, meteors expend as they fall from our sky, creating the streak of sunshine we generally name a taking pictures star or fireball.
While most meteors expend, bigger items can generally survive the journey and attain Earth. Those items are referred to as meteorites.
Contributing: Mary Walrath-Holdridge, USA TODAY
Kate Perez covers nationwide developments and breaking information for USA TODAY. You can attain her at kperez@usatodayco.com or on X @katecperez_.
