A fireball, or a huge dazzling shooting star, travels across the western sky above Tokyo on the night of Jan. 20. (The Asahi Shimbun)
A brilliant fireball lit up the night sky as it streaked through the western sky over Tokyo on Jan. 20 at about 8:30 p.m. and could be seen over a wide area.
The meteor continued shining brightly for more than five seconds at a magnitude of minus 10, almost as bright as that of the waxing moon.
Since the night skies were clear in many prefectures stretching from Tokyo, the fireball could be readily spotted by many people looking up into the sky.