THEY kept their eyes on the sky: Wokingham residents were treated to an unexpected meteor shower on Monday night.
The UK Meteor Network said it received 94 reports of sightings across the south of England at around 9.45pm on May 16.
Those looking out of their windows at the opportune moment will have caught a glimpse of the dazzling streak.
Shinfield resident Laura Hulland heard a commotion outside her house. She checked footage from her doorbell camera and was stunned to see a fireball shooting across the night sky.
“I couldn’t believe it when I saw the flashing light and almost dismissed it,” she explained.
“The next day, I saw that there had been a meteor close by and immediately checked the footage again. I knew then it was a meteor and that the film was very unique.”
The spectacular nature of the meteor was not lost on Prof Mathew Owens, University of Reading Department of Meteorology.
“It seems to have been a particularly bright and impressive bolide meteor. This is the second this week,” he explained.
“From the timing and locations, they can estimate an approximate trajectory of the meteor. Its likely origin is the asteroid belt, out just beyond Mars’ orbit.
“It seems it likely burnt up in the atmosphere so no meteors made it to the ground.”
