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1.  Fireball Spotted Over Ireland
A massive fireball was spotted blazing across the Irish sky on Wednesday night by thousands of people across the country. We have received reports from people from all over Ireland who saw the spectacle on Wednesday, at approximately 10:45pm.
 
This exceptionally big and bright meteor is known as a fireball, and can in some cases contain as much energy as an atomic bomb. Fireballs are often big enough to survive the fall through Earth's atmosphere, and can sometimes drop fragments of space rock down to Earth's surface.
 
The fireball is likely to be a piece of a comet or asteroid that passed near Earth's orbit sometime in the past, or the result of debris floating in space left over from when the Solar System and the planets formed billions of years ago.
 
If you saw the meteor, please send in your report HERE. We will gather reports and perform an analysis over the coming week. With enough results, it will be possible to determine where any meteorites may have landed!
 
 
2.  Lunar Eclipse Tomorrow Morning
On May 25th, the very edge of the Moon will pass through Earth's penumbral shadow. So, while an eclipse will take place, it will be effectively "invisible" to observers on the ground.
 
However, if you do manage to get any photos with special photographic techniques, please let us know by emailing observe@astronomy.ie. The time of greatest eclipse will be at 5:10am Irish time on Saturday morning.
 
You can find out more about the eclipse and the Moon's path through Earth's shadow HERE.
 
 

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