I saw the fireball already in progress as I was driving east at about 20 mph across the bridge. There was loud music in the car so any sounds would not likely have been heard. Total brightness was between 1.5-2x as bright as Venus at it's brightest. The piece that broke off seemed to be slowed and fall almost vertically. It winked out a split second before the main body did. no pic, but sketch made immediately upon arrival at work (approx 5 mins later).
Location
Address
Cheat Lake, WV
Latitude
39° 40' 0.06'' N (39.666683°)
Longitude
79° 51' 40.76'' W (-79.861323°)
Elevation
265.076996m
Time and Duration
Local Date & Time
2026-01-08 06:47 EST
UT Date & Time
2026-01-08 11:47 UT
Duration
≈3.5s
Direction
Moving direction
From up right to down left
Descent Angle
210°
Moving
Facing azimuth
305°
First azimuth
315°
First elevation
35°
Last azimuth
300°
Last elevation
20°
Brightness and color
Stellar Magnitude
-9
Color
Green
Concurrent Sound
Observation
Unknown
Remarks
-
Delayed Sound
Observation
Unknown
Remarks
-
Persistent train
Observation
No
Duration
-
Length
-
Remarks
-
Terminal flash
Observation
No
Remarks
-
Fragmentation
Observation
Yes
Remarks
A smaller piece, approximately a tenth the brightness, broke off immediately after I started viewing it and fell almost vertically down.
