Scientific Explanation of Meteor Passage Over Attica Sky by Theodoros Kolydas

The stunning passage of a meteor visible in the skies over Attica and Corinth was scientifically explained by meteorologist and director of the National Meteorological Service, Theodoros Kolydas. In an extensive post, Kolydas detailed the bright flash of the meteor captured on Monday (February 10, 2025) by a camera at the Acharnes Meteorological Station in Menidi. He noted that the light was unmistakably witnessed through a video taken by Vangelis N. Markou’s webcam, integrated into his meteoacharnes.gr station. According to Kolydas, such meteors are more visible during early morning hours due to Earth’s orbital velocity adding to their speed. Meteors appearing in the evening have lower speeds because Earth’s motion subtracts from their velocity. He clarified that a meteor is the bright phenomenon caused by a solid body entering Earth’s atmosphere, while the term ‘meteoroid’ refers to the solid object itself. A ‘bolide,’ like the one observed, is a meteor whose brightness equals or exceeds that of the brightest planets. With Venus being the brightest planet at magnitude -4.7, meteors with m ≤ 4.7 are classified as bolides. Finally, a meteorite is the part of the meteoroid that survives atmospheric entry and reaches Earth’s surface.