[meteorite-list] Bright Light Seen Over New Zealand

[Ron Baalke]

http://www.hbtoday.co.nz/storydisplay.cfm?storyid=3651853

Space junk could have lit up sky
Hawke's Bay Today (New Zealand)
September 9, 2005

The bright light seen in the sky over Hawke's Bay on Wednesday night may
have been space junk.

Susan Martin from Esk Valley was at Aropaoanui when she saw what looked
like a distress flare between 6.30 and 6.45pm. A woman from her work
told her she had heard on the radio that NASA had brought down some
space junk over the Pacific Ocean.

Napier woman Joan Vyle was out running about 6.35pm near the Port of
Napier when she saw the flare of light. Having seen quite a few
meteorites streak across the sky she did not think it was one of those.
"It looked like it came down on the (Napier) hill but it must have been
further out.

It was unreal."

Another Napier woman, Kim Willoughby, said she saw a weird flash of
orange in the sky about 6.15pm and the family had a discussion about
what it might have been. "I've never seen anything like it before, it
was quite big and really bright."

Hawke's Bay Holt Planetarium director Gary Sparks had not seen any
confirmation that man-made rubbish falling to earth was the cause of the
light but it made sense, he said. "If they were de-orbiting something it
wouldn't usually be anywhere near land ... but it would be a logical
explanation."