Meteor spotted in skies above Shropshire
Some thought it was a firework, others a plane in trouble – but the streak of light shooting across the skies above Shropshire last night was actually a piece of Halley's Comet.
The meteor was the talk of Twitter today, with people from across England swapping stories of how they had witnessed the rare phenomenon.
The dramatic shooting star was clear across Shropshire, travelling at speed at around 10pm.
Paul Thomson, who saw the meteor from his home in Newport, said: "I thought it was a firework at first because it appeared to be green. It was spectacular."
Richard Crombie, 44, from Ford, near Shrewsbury, said he was in his conservatory with his wife when he spotted the fireball.
He said: "I just saw something out of the corner of my eye and when I looked it was like an LED torch colour, a bright blue white, and it arced straight over the sky. I thought it was a plane to start with. I've seen shooting stars before but this was really big. It was so low, like a flare out at sea."
Space scientist Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock said the meteor was likely to have been large debris from Halley's Comet as part of the Eta Aquarid meteor shower, which peaked on Sunday.
But Mandy Bailey, chairwoman of the Shropshire Astronomical Society, said she believes it might have been a piece of space junk burning up in the atmosphere.
She said: "It could have been a small piece of debris. We saw one of a similar size last autumn."
Did you see the meteor last night? Send your photos or videos to newsroom@shropshirestar.co.uk
