Bright light in Las Vegas sky not distressed aircraft

By Pashtana Usufzy

Tuesday, Dec. 22, 2015 | 8:07 p.m.

A light spotted over the Las Vegas Valley this evening was not a distressed aircraft but may possibly have been a meteor or “space junk,” according to a McCarran International Airport spokesman and an astronomy expert.

Airport spokesman Paul Bobson said there have been no aircraft emergencies or incidents in the area this evening.

“From the videos I have seen, the object appears to be a bright meteor or what we sometimes call a fireball,” Bob Pippin of the College of Southern Nevada Planetarium said.

There are several possible sources of meteor activity in the sky this week, according to the American Meteor Society.

Pippin, who did not see the object in person, said The Ursids, a minor meteor shower, could have been behind the sighting. He also said it's possible the object was a piece of “space junk,” a man-made object or piece of trash in orbit around the Earth.

The light inspired chatter on social media with multiple videos of a bright white light streaking across the sky popping up across the Web.

There were multiple reports through social media of similar scenes in Southern California and Arizona.

Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Ian Gregor forwarded questions to the National Weather Service and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

A Weather Service spokesman said he did not know what the object was and that it falls outside the scope of the organization's work.