‘It was like a huge fireball’: Incredible moment meteor lights up the night sky as it crashes into the Earth’s atmosphere over Australia

• Space rocks crashed towards Earth and lit up the sky in Adelaide and Melbourne 
• Video shows a bright fireball zooming towards Earth on Tuesday night
• It crashes into atmosphere and illuminates the dark sky, baffling residents 

A meteor shower pelted southern Australia on Tuesday night.

Space rocks burnt up in the Earth’s atmosphere and lit up the night sky in Adelaide and Melbourne.

One incredible home video taken in Endeavour Hills, Melbourne shows a fiery rock zooming towards the ground before burning up and illuminating the sky.

One incredible home video (pictured) taken in Endeavour Hills, Melbourne shows a fiery rock zooming towards the ground

The Astronomical Society confirmed there was a meteor shower. 

Another meteor lit up the night sky over Adelaide on Tuesday night.

Video shows the fireball crashing towards Earth south of the city at 11pm.  

Driver Dylan Bishop caught the incredible moment on his dashcam.

The video was posted on Facebook where dozens disagreed over what it was – although many realised it was a meteor.   

Elyshia Norman wrote on Facebook that she saw a ‘huge fireball’ at 11pm.

‘It made the whole house rumble, thought it was an earthquake,’ she said.

Dara Lee said: ‘We are in Naracoorte where It lit up the sky and was felt when it hit the ground somewhere south west of here.’

Tash Niutta added: ‘I didn’t hear anything but I saw it, I was driving with a friend to what appeared to be a huge bright white light, lit up the car inside to then turn Into an orange ball like passing flash. Super weird.’

And Rebecca Millie commented: ‘It was so bright in Mount Gambier and shook our whole house. Was amazing to see, wish I captured it on film.’ 

What is a meteor shower and what are the types of space rocks? 

An asteroid is a large chunk of rock left over from collisions or the early solar system. Most are located between Mars and Jupiter in the Main Belt.

A comet is a rock covered in ice, methane and other compounds. Their orbits take them much further out of the solar system.

A meteor is what astronomers call a flash of light in the atmosphere when debris burns up.

This debris itself is known as a meteoroid. Most are so small they are vapourised in the atmosphere.

If any of this meteoroid makes it to Earth, it is called a meteorite.

Meteors, meteoroids and meteorites normally originate from asteroids and comets.

For example, if Earth passes through the tail of a comet, much of the debris burns up in the atmosphere, forming a meteor shower. 

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