Fireball meteor spotted in skies over Switzerland and Austria

© YouTube/Simi366

There were reported sightings of the fireball in Austria, France, Switzerland and Germany.

Footage of an unidentified object, thought to be a meteor or meteorite, moving across the night skies above central Europe has emerged online.

The video, which was filmed using a car's dashboard camera, shows the fireball streaking across the sky above a road in the Tyrol region of Austria.

There were also reported sightings in eastern France, Germany and Switzerland.

The exact nature of the object is not yet known, but it can be seen glowing brightly as it makes its way through the sky before disappearing.

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According to Nasa, a meteor is:"the light phenomenon which results when a meteoroid (small particle from a comet or asteroid orbiting the Sun) enters the Earth's atmosphere and vaporizes."

It is more commonly referred to as "a shooting star".

A meteorite, meanwhile, is: "a meteoroid that survives its passage through the Earth's atmosphere and lands upon the Earth's surface".

© International Meteor Organization

Latest map showing the density of reports of the fireball.