Meteor over Western Cape, South Africa. Large Explosion

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Cape Town locals were treated to a rare astronomical show on Wednesday, when a meteor appeared in the sky shortly after dusk.

Social media was abuzz with reports of a ‘bright light’ encompassing the night sky and it wasn’t just Capetonians who were left startled and perplexed. Shortly after 8:30pm, several reports of a ‘meteorite’ sighting above the Western Cape region began to surface.

From Malmesbury to Hermanus, Cape Town to Ceres – farmers and urbanites all reported the same unusual observations. According to eye witnesses, the meteor was accompanied by ‘a loud bang’, which has been described as sounding like ‘a gas bottle exploding’. Other reports indicate that the meteor rattled houses and windows as it plummeted to earth.