Huge white Fireball meteor
((NUFORC Note: We spoke at length via telephone with this witness, and we suspect that she is an exceptionally capable and reliable witness. PD))
December 2, 2011. Concord, North Carolina. Driving on Cold Springs Road heading south coming from Highway 73 to 3 miles before Highway 49. Location is farmland without localized ambient lighting. 6:10pm, clear skies. From the 9 o’clock position (which would be from the east) a round bright white flaming firelight the size of 1/32 of the moon, coming down at a less than 30 degree angle and traveling with the arc of the earth.
My 13 year old daughter says “Wow Mom a shooting star”. I pull car over as it passes at the 12 o clock position in front of the car. At the 2 o clock position white sparkle rocks start breaking off from the main round body until the 2:30 position where the entire object blows into lots of small white pieces and fizzles out.
Entire sequence takes 10 to 12 seconds. My first and second impression was that it was a hospital or news helicopter like a Jet Ranger, traveling low, fast and with landing/search light on coming at us. As ! it passed us I then believed it to be a rotorcraft with trouble as evidenced by the ending “explosion” and destruction of the object.
I am have 60+ hours in Cessna 152 aircraft and am familiar with various small aircraft. I am an attorney and familiar with factual reporting and expert witness testimony.
I have never seen anything like this before – it was SO bright, large and deliberate in movement.
I called local Charlotte, N.C. TV station WBTV at about 6:30pm to report what I witnessed and to see if others had called in similar reports. None had. I have never witnessed anything like this. It was amazing.
((NUFORC Note: We spoke at length via telephone with this witness, and we suspect that she is an exceptionally capable and reliable witness. PD))
December 2, 2011. Concord, North Carolina. Driving on Cold Springs Road heading south coming from Highway 73 to 3 miles before Highway 49. Location is farmland without localized ambient lighting. 6:10pm, clear skies. From the 9 o’clock position (which would be from the east) a round bright white flaming firelight the size of 1/32 of the moon, coming down at a less than 30 degree angle and traveling with the arc of the earth.
My 13 year old daughter says “Wow Mom a shooting star”. I pull car over as it passes at the 12 o clock position in front of the car. At the 2 o clock position white sparkle rocks start breaking off from the main round body until the 2:30 position where the entire object blows into lots of small white pieces and fizzles out.
Entire sequence takes 10 to 12 seconds. My first and second impression was that it was a hospital or news helicopter like a Jet Ranger, traveling low, fast and with landing/search light on coming at us. As ! it passed us I then believed it to be a rotorcraft with trouble as evidenced by the ending “explosion” and destruction of the object.
I am have 60+ hours in Cessna 152 aircraft and am familiar with various small aircraft. I am an attorney and familiar with factual reporting and expert witness testimony.
I have never seen anything like this before – it was SO bright, large and deliberate in movement.
I called local Charlotte, N.C. TV station WBTV at about 6:30pm to report what I witnessed and to see if others had called in similar reports. None had. I have never witnessed anything like this. It was amazing.
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Concord
USA
10-12 seconds
10-12 seconds
35.41
-80.60
fireball
NC
Occurred : 12/2/2011 18:10 (Entered as : 12/02/11 18:10) Reported: 12/5/2011 7:32:54 PM 19:32 Posted: 12/12/2011 Location: Concord, NC Shape: Fireball Duration: 10-12 seconds
Huge white Fireball meteor