It wasn’t a bird nor a plane, but a small asteroid — about a meter in size — detected by the European Space Agency (ESA) to enter the Earth’s atmosphere last September 4th, officially came crashing down the following day and was seen blazing at dawn over some areas in Luzon. 

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) describes asteroids as irregularly shaped rocky or metallic remains that orbit the Sun along with the planets. Aside from being made of elements like nickel and iron, their sizes usually range from being as small as pebbles to being hundreds of miles in diameter — with the largest identified as Ceres. 

The majority of these rocks can be spotted in the flow of the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, NASA adds. However, Space.com notes that there are times wherein the heavy pull of Jupiter’s gravity pushes then jerks them flying into random directions, similar to when a balloon rapidly loses air. 

Although the cause of the asteroid’s Earthly travel is unknown, the ESA clarified that despite flaring like a star or “fireball” its entrance is not a cause of worry due to its harmless nature, but Bagyong Enteng surely made its appearance quite difficult to view.

Luckily, a video released by some citizens of Cagayan Province captured this radiating event with ESA noting it as “just the ninth asteroid that humankind has ever spotted before impact.” 

“The asteroid was expected to get crushed into small fragments by friction — a resisting force — before actually touching the land”, a statement shared to “Balitanghali” by Mario Raymundo, chief of PAGASA astronomical publication and planetarium unit.

In instances wherein its remnants are to be found, these shall be termed as “meteorites” and no longer asteroids, since meteorites are known simply as the same celestial objects that have touched the Earth’s surface. 

However, chances of discovering the fragments are slim, as Raymundo suggests that the meteorites may have dived into the depths of the bodies of water.