People in Spain and Portugal were stunned as a dramatic, bright fireball streaked across the night sky on Saturday night, May 18, 2024.
The bright bluish-green light lit up the night sky at 11:46 PM. Many inadvertently caught the powerful demonstration as they were filming other things.
You can see how dramatic it was in the X below:
Experts estimated it was traveling at 100,000 miles (ca. 160,934 km) an hour, which is twice the speed of a typical meteorite. Leading many to believe it was not a meteorite, but rather a comet fragment.
Unfortunately, like many asteroids that have had close encounters with Earth in recent years, astronomers had no forewarning about it.
But I found it curious how it was described.
“Experts say it had a strange trajectory, not matching the sort normally taken by nearby space rocks,” writes Robin Andrews in his article for the New York Times.
“It’s an unexpected interplanetary fireworks show,” was how Meg Schwamb from Queen’s University Belfast Planetary Division described it.
“It almost looked like daylight … we all looked back and saw it,” said Mr. Taborda, an eyewitness, in an interview with ABC News. “It felt like a movie, we all looked at each other and we were stunned.”
While people talked about how stunning, unexpected, and strange this event was, the Bible used similar words to describe the events happening in the sky leading up to the second coming of Christ.
According to Jesus, these mysterious signs would serve as a sign and warning to Earth that we have entered the birth pang stage of the end times.
“And there will be great earthquakes, and in various places plagues and famines; and there will be terrors and great signs from heaven.” (Luke 21:25 ESV)
“I will display wonders in the sky and on the earth,
Blood, fire and columns of smoke.” (Joel 2:30 ESV)
“And I will grant wonders in the sky above
And signs on the earth below,
Blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke.” (Acts 2:19 ESV)
“There will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth dismay among nations, in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves,” (Luke 21:25 ESV)
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