Fireball sightings are surging across the US — here's what's really going on

With bright meteors sighted over Ohio, Texas, and Europe, you might wonder what's going on. Is meteor activity really increasing, or is there just a surge in reporting?

"This is the question everybody wants answered," said Nick Moskovitz, a planetary scientist at Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona, to Space. Com. "I think we are looking at slightly elevated meteor activity, though still well within statistical expectations, and increased awareness and reporting, which happens whenever big events occur.

A series of fireballs — very bright meteors — were spotted across North America from March 17-23, 2026. People in Ohio reported one on March 17. The next sightings were in California on March 19, Michigan and Georgia on March 20, and Texas on March 21, where a fragment crashed through a house roof.