"Rare Meteor Shower Illuminates Night Skies Across Eastern U.S."

A dazzling fireball lit up the evening skies over the eastern United States and parts of Canada, with over 200 observers reporting sightings in 11 U.S. states and Ontario. The meteor, traveling at 32,000 mph, was visible for 1 to 20 seconds and was captured on camera in various locations. While meteors are harmless and never hit the Earth's surface, meteorites do, and about 48 1/2 tons of meteoritic material falls on Earth every day. NASA estimates that most of these space rocks are pieces that broke off larger objects in space, such as comets or asteroids.