Hello!!!! ...and something strange over Seattle this evening.

Hi everyone, longtime lurker and thought I'd finally make my introduction.

Also:
My mom called me this evening on her way home from work (as she knows these things interest me) and alerted me that during her drive to her house, the local news was interrupted by a 'breaking story' that something spectacular had just appeared in the skies over Seattle, described as a breathtaking giant blue light, like a fireball, shooting across the sky. The resident meteorologist was on the air saying he had never seen anything like it and had no idea what it was, and they were looking into it and would report as soon as possible when they contacted the right people and figured out what it was. She said they were speaking about it very excitedly, and promised to come right back and talk about when they had figured out about it-- but they went to commercial break and didn't bring it up again at all O.o I have looked at all of the local news sites, including the website of the station that she was listening to, and nothing. (And, no, I'm not claiming Nibiru or Elenin or an alien craft!!) I just can't imagine a meteor would have been "breaking news" and shocked the meteorologist, and I can't imagine it was ROSAT, by this point all debris should have fallen right?

And it just seems strange to me that I can't find mention of it anywhere, since they made such a huge deal of it at the time apparently.

I wish I had seen it! I guess I'm just wondering if anyone out there in the Seattle area witnessed it? It would have been between 6pm - 7pm local time (PST)

Anyway, hi everyone.

Hello! Welcome and thanks for posting.

There have been many reports of auroras due to CME activity. Could this be what it was?

Sounds like a meteorite to me. They can leave long streaks and can be quite spectacular. The Orionid Meteor showers have been going on the last few days.

Welcome To ATS!

If you're unsure about anything, don't hesitate to ask for help.

Hope you find the answers you're looking for on here..& enjoy your time on here.

Happy Huntin'

reply to post by ladykenzie

Per my friend Google, last time there were "blue flashes" over Seattle during or after a thunder storm, it was attributed to power transformers catching fire.

But be patient. The story may have just not hit the internet yet.

reply to post by Copperflower


I am going with this too...

Northern Lights Over North America 10/24/2011

I was outside around that time and didn't notice anything. I live in West Seattle.

Hey, welcome to ATS. You will no doubt love it here... At least I hope... If not I beg for your forgiveness ( Hyper tonight... Sorry )

But yes there have been lots of reports of aurora lights tonight. I imagine that is what it is. Take a look around ATS.

If you have any questions about ATS or how to do something here ( It is a complex site and can be confusing at time) Fee free to send me a U2U (message).

I am always glad to help out.

What radio station was she listening to (so I can find the news station associated with it)?
It might be a meteorite since there is a meteor shower coinciding with the northern lights. I believe it's the Orionids.


In case the question gets brought up, in response to the blue light I can tell you that there isn't any increased military activity. ...

I'm in Tacoma, near JBLM, I also went on base about a half hour ago hoping I could see the northern lights (It's much darker there) and the base was quiet. I don't even hear any planes tonight.

Hi LadyKenzie, I'm new here too. Just saw our local news here and they mentioned a meteor sighting here as well as the very very unusual auroras seen tonight. (We don't usually see them this far south.) Seems like it was a lively night for skywatching. Unfortunately I was indoors kicking back with a well deserved cold one after playing patty cake with concrete (building concrete footers) all day and missed all the excitement.

Here's a site you might want to peruse - it's the American Meteor Society's Fireball Log. They track sightings all over. As you can tell - lots from the upstate carolinas tonight. Closest thing on your side of the world was in Inverness, CA. best I can tell.
Fireball Log

reply to post by l_e_cox



I would say this would be a possibility but it was actually quite a clear day here... definitely no thunderstorms

[
she was listening to Komo Newsradio.

i]reply to post by collietta

Yeah my first instinct when she told me was meteor, and that's still my first guess. I saw a few pretty cool meteors over the weekend above the skies here, and I didn't witness this sighting tonight with my own eyes so I can't really say one way or another, it just seems weird that people wouldn't have identified it as such...? Ehh but people like to dramatize everything so who knows.

I WISH it was the aurora, I have always wanted to see it, and i have been reading about everyone seeing it in Ohio, Indiana, Kansas, etc. ...but I haven't heard of any sightings anywhere close to WA state. Doesn't mean it's not possible, but I haven't heard of it?

No luck. I've been searching the Komo News radio and tv along with other internet sources. I can't find anything on a blue streak through the sky tonight.
I did find an article from 2005 about a blue meteor passing through Seattle.Due to the meteor shower tonight, it was probably a meteor, however I don't understand why their wouldn't be any reports on a meteor.
I think your best bet is to find some witnesses, either to the event, or broadcast.

reply to post by ladykenzie


Hello, I was fortunate to see the fireball on my commute home. I was heading north on I-5, just passing Lake Union, when it passed at 10'oclock heading north-northeast. Very bright, especially since it was before sunset, and a lovely sight. I was reminded how long its been since we've had a clear view of a meteor shower--however I'll take a single event any time

reply to post by taylordayne


Joined just to say I saw it as well! It was definitely not aurora. Looked very much like a meteor, but far more blue than any meteor I've ever seen. Also, it was remarkably bright considering it was still light out. Additionally, it was probably a longer tail than almost any meteor I've ever seen, and I've seen my fair share. It was very impressive to say the least. I remembered this morning about seeing it and did a google search to see if anyone had any info on it which led me to this post.

It indeed showed up on the komo website today, and they still don't have an answer for it~

news link

reply to post by ladykenzie


For the record, what I saw looked pretty much nothing like what's in that photo. It was not a stationary bright light, but instead, a long trailing blue light. Lasted less than a second and then it was gone. It was really beautiful though.

Op, Puyallup here! Welcome to ats my friend!

I didnt hear anything about this on the news....but if it was KING 5 and jeff renner, well, hes never right...

Last month I saw a comet that began about in the middle of the night sky and went all the way past the horizon. Saw it for what seemed like 6 seconds. It had a bright orange tail to it and it was spectacular. I don't think it got filmed though. I would love to see that again.