Video shows bright streaks of light soaring over Northern California sky

Friday, March 17, 2023
SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Check out this fireball in the sky! People reported seeing it as far north as Sacramento and south to Fresno.
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ABC7 spoke with an astronomer for the Smithsonian, who tells us this was a piece of a satellite antenna from the International Space Station.

He says you could classify this as "space junk."

It's been orbiting the earth's atmosphere for several years, and experts knew it would re-enter sometime on Friday, but they didn't know exactly when or exactly where.
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It ended up soaring over Sacramento around 9:30 p.m.

McDowell says there is no danger to anyone who's seeing it.

It'll break into very small bits before hitting the ground.



Based on the trajectory, he expects those pieces probably landed near Yosemite National Park.

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