A Meteor Lights Up the Sky Over Attica, Offering a Rare Sight

In an awe-inspiring display, the sky over Attica was illuminated by a meteor at 11:11 PM on April 10th. The unique moment was captured by the camera of the Acharnes Meteorological Station. Traveling west-northwest, the meteor that lit up the Attican sky appeared to be several meters in size, as seen in the video. Meteors move at speeds of tens of kilometers per second. The brightest meteors and fireballs are accompanied by a bright ‘tail’ that lingers for minutes after the meteor’s combustion. The video of this luminous phenomenon was shared by meteorologist Theodoros Kolydas on X (formerly Twitter), sparking excitement among social media users. Known in astronomy as any luminous phenomenon inside Earth’s atmosphere caused by a meteoroid entering it, meteors burn brightly due to intense friction with atmospheric molecules. Larger meteors may reach the ground, creating craters if they’re large enough, while their remnants are called meteorites. They primarily appear at altitudes of 120 km, with smaller ones disappearing between 60-80 km. Shooting stars, often referred to colloquially as ‘falling stars,’ are small meteoroids typically no larger than a grain of rice. When these particles enter Earth’s atmosphere at high velocities, they emit light and ionize air molecules along their path. During certain times of the year, Earth passes through comet debris trails, causing meteor showers.