Aurora borealis livecam catches spectacular meteor strike
A livecam meant to watch the northern lights also catches the daytime-bright arrival of a meteor coming in for a landing.
It's a scenic view from Lapland. There's a faint glow on the dark horizon and a quaint snow-covered cottage. Then it all lights up like daytime. Off to the side, a streak of light appears. The footage comes from an aurora borealis livecam that coincidentally caught sight of a blazing meteor.
The livecam is hosted by Finland's Aurora Service Tours, a tour company specializing in trips to see the northern lights. The tour guides shared the eye-opening video on Thursday, not long after the event occurred.
Tony Bateman, the Aurora Service Tours founder, posted about the experience on Facebook. He describes hearing a huge bang and feeling his cottage shake violently. When he checked the livecam footage, he found the meteor descending like a huge fireball.
This has been an active week for things falling from the sky. On Wednesday, the American Meteor Society reported four major fireball events within 10 hours with sightings from Germany, France and the US. Some of these may stem from the annual Taurid meteor shower, which peaked last weekend.
