A magnificent fireball lit up the night sky above Arizona in the early hours of Oct. 6, blazing a fiery path as it streaked earthward through the atmosphere before appearing to disintegrate as it neared the horizon.
The fireball flared repeatedly during its descent through Earth's atmosphere, which was captured in a livestream from the town of Dragoon, Arizona operated by the trainspotting website SouthWest RailCams and shared by X user rbmichae80.
@ArabSteez Video from a webcam in Dragoon AZ, southeast of Tucson, it enters the frame at 1:03:43 am, from https://t.co/G1N8Riy7Pp https://t.co/jLvSkM72OaOctober 6, 2026
Astrophotographer Andrew McCarthy also shared his view of the fireball's final moments in a post on X. "Absolutely insane sky-crossing meteor just now in Arizona," commented McCarthy. "Visibly green/turquoise with pieces breaking off, glowed brightly until about 10 degrees off the horizon".
McCarthy noted that the fireball appeared to be moving too fast to be a satellite re-entering Earth's atmosphere as it travelled eastward through the early morning sky. "My best guess is it 'landed' somewhere over Tonto national forest," continued McCarthy. "Anyone else see it?"
I only caught the very tail end of it with the camera. I might be wrong bit it looked like it was moving far too fast to be a starlink reentry. https://t.co/OBitk7PGbKOctober 6, 2026
What is a fireball?
Fireballs appear when chunks of asteroids or comets ranging from a few centimeters to multiple meters in size — known as meteoroids — strike Earth's atmosphere while travelling at tens of thousands of miles per hour.
The EOS R8 delivers the essential interval shooting functionality you need to capture meteors without bursting the bank. Check out our full Canon EOS R8 review for more.
The shards of interplanetary debris are swiftly slowed and heated by atmospheric friction, which can make them shine brighter than the planet Venus as they carve a fiery path through the night sky, according to NASA's Center for Near Earth Object Studies.
The color of a fireball is determined in part by its chemical composition, with the vivid green hue reported during the Oct. 6 event potentially indicating a relatively high magnesium content, per the National Park Service.
Fragments of larger meteors that survive to reach the surface are known as meteorites and can serve as a valuable window into the formation of the solar system. Think your rock might be from outer space? Then be sure to read our home guide to identifying and observing meteorite features!
Editor's Note: If you would like to share your astrophotography with Space.com's readers, then please send your photo(s), comments, and your name and location to spacephotos@space.com.
