Meteor Lights Up the Sky Over Turkey; Onlookers See Streaking Green Light Through Clouds [Watch Video]

A meteor making an entry into the Earth was visible in Turkey, and the onlookers were surprised by the spectacle it had created.

Meteor Makes a Flash of Green Light in Turkey

On Friday night (July 5), a meteor was visible in northern Turkey. Social media footage from Safranbolu showed amazed onlookers as the meteor raced across the sky.

The Turkish Space Agency verified the meteor sighting and described the properties of these celestial objects in a post on X. When space pebbles from outer space re-enter the atmosphere as fireballs and land on Earth; they are referred to as "meteorites" if they make it through and land. The gases in the Earth's atmosphere, a meteor's speed, and its chemical makeup all affect its color during re-entry.

 A meteor can produce more brilliant colors and discharge more energy if it is large enough. The metal content gives meteors their color. Green is a typical hue of iron-nickel metallic meteors, the most common type. Green meteors are usually observed on Earth. In May, another meteor entered our planet and left a similar stunning display of green light when it passed the skies of Spain and Portugal. The meteor was not detected before the re-entry or the collision, according to a statement made by the European Space Agency (ESA) at the time.

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What Are Meteors and Meteorites?

All meteors and meteorites originate from meteoroids, which are rocks in space. Meteoroids range in size and can be as small as dust grains to small asteroids.

When meteoroids enter Earth's atmosphere at high speed, they burn up, and the resulting fireballs or "shooting stars" are called meteors. When a meteoroid survives a trip through the atmosphere and hits the ground, it's called a meteorite.

According to scientific estimates, meteoritic debris weighing around 48.5 tons (44 tonnes or 44,000 kilograms) falls on Earth daily. Meteors typically occur several times every hour in Earth's atmosphere, with almost all of the material vaporizing and leaving a dazzling trail known affectionately as "shooting stars." Meteor showers are periods when the number of meteors increases sharply.

Among the most popular meteor showers are the Perseids, Leonids, Taurids, Geminids, Quadrantids, and Southern Delta Aquariids. This year, Delta Aquariids are expected to light up the sky from late July to mid-August and could join the August Perseids.

The Delta Aquariids meteor shower will peak on July 30, 2024, at 15:16 UTC. However, the shower does not have a noticeable peak. However, under ideal conditions, one can observe 15 to 20 meteors every hour while standing under a dark sky with no moon. Also, Delta Aquariids can mix with Perseids next month, which may increase the number of meteors one can see every hour.

The Delta Aquariids of July are Southern Hemisphere-specific, just like the Eta Aquariids of May. In far northern latitudes, skywatchers tend to ignore it. However, showers from latitudes similar to those in the southern United States can be significant. Compared to Perseid meteors, delta Aquariid meteors are typically fainter. About 5% to 10% of Delta Aquariid meteors leave persistent trains or bright ionized gas trails behind that last a few seconds after the meteor has passed.

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Check out more news and information on Meteor Shower in Science Times.