The Great Day Time Fireball of 1972

The above image shows, moving across the sky, the Great Daylight Fireball taken August 10, 1972. Image Credit and Copyright: Antarctic Search for Meteorites program, Case Western Reserve University, James M. Baker

Today on Discovery Enterprise we commemorate a celestial event
that was one of many a wakeup call for humanity.

Our species has a celestial Sword of Damocles hanging
over it collective destiny. We can no longer go about our humdrum worldly
concerns and abandon any attention to the heavens and the dangers that lurk in
the local celestial neighbourhood.

Somewhere out in the dark depths of space there lurks
a large meteorite, asteroid or comet with our name on it.

On August 10th, 1972, an unusually bright
meteor from space was witnessed bouncing off Earth's atmosphere, much like a
skipping stone can bounce off of a calm lake. The impressive event lasted
several seconds, was visible in broad daylight, and reportedly visible all the
way from Utah to Alberta,
Canada.

Map of the Trajectory of the fireball

As pictured above, the fireball was photographed
streaking above the Teton Mountains behind Jackson
Lake, Wyoming.

The Great Daylight Fireball of 1972 was possibly the
size of a small truck, and ...