A Sighting

When I've seen meteors, they look like what they're called, shooting stars, a white pin point of light streaking across the sky. Recently though, I saw something else.

For the first month I was here, Nicole and I were staying in an apartment in a residential area a couple of miles outside of downtown. At night, it was really dark outside; there were no streetlights or porchlights nearby. The darkness offered a nice view of the stars, and I'd stare up at them when out there, typically when going from the car to the apartment.

One night, I was looking up at the stars when a meteor streaked into view. But it was no pin point. It was thick, about as thick as my fist. I could see the orange flame as it burned and the trail of smoke it left in the sky. It seemed to move slower than other meteors I've seen, and it seemed no higher than three stories in the air. Within a couple of seconds, it was out of view.

It seemed like a meteor completing its descent to Earth. I listened for a crash but didn't hear one. Maybe someone ended up with a piece of space rock, maybe it burned up. But it was fascinating to see.