Residents of several suburban communities reported seeing several objects streaking across the night sky, leaving a trail of flames in their wake.
Video captured by Yorkville, Illinois resident Nannette Englehardt showed the objects flying from west to east across the sky at approximately 9 p.m. Tuesday night.
Residents in Wadsworth and several other communities also reported seeing the streaks of light in the sky.
According to NBC Chicago Storm Team Meteorologist Brant Miller, the objects do not appear to have been meteors, but rather pieces of debris falling from space and burning up in the Earth’s atmosphere.
There were no immediate reports of any of the debris hitting the ground, and NORAD, the North American Aerospace Defense Command, has not yet issued a report on the incident.
Scientists have warned that with more satellites floating in the Earth’s atmosphere that more instances of spacecraft reentering and burning up in the atmosphere could take place, and some have even warned that vaporized metals could continue floating around in the stratosphere, causing potential pollution and other effects, according to Scientific American.
