Meteor lights up the sky as locals describe 'shockwave' and sonic boom as phenomenon shoots past in seconds

A spectacular green meteor lit up the sky on Friday night and was seen as far away as Andalusia and Ceuta, according to the Spanish news site Diario Área.

One resident of Europort described feeling a 'shockwave' sensation which caused his windows to shake at around the same time local photographer David Parody happened to look up into the sky.

He was walking in the area of Watergardens at around 8.30pm with his family when he saw a fiery mass streaking across the sky for several seconds followed by a sonic boom.

President of the Gibraltar Astronomical Society, William Recagno said the phenomenon, known as a Bolite, is a rare site in these parts.

The streak of light is caused by a meteoroid, either a piece of rock or metallic body from outer space, crashing through Earth's atmosphere

If you missed the meteor, there's a chance to catch an extremely rare green comet which will be passing close to earth for the first time in 50,000 years.

Astronomers believe Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) can best be seen on the 1st or 2nd of February - but make sure you have a good pair of binoculars or a telescope handy as it could be difficult to see with the naked eye.

(Note: The picture we have used for this story is a generic image of a meteor and is not the one seen on Friday).

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