A dazzling fireball illuminated the evening skies over the eastern United States and parts of Canada on Wednesday night, captivating more than 200 observers in 11 U.S. states and Ontario. The fireball, which entered Earth’s atmosphere and burned up, was spotted between 6:45 and 7 p.m. EST, with reports indicating it lasted anywhere from 1 to 7 1/2 seconds.

Witnesses in Augusta, West Virginia, and Front Royal, Virginia, claimed the fireball lingered for as long as 20 seconds, while a resident in Lyndon, Virginia, captured the spectacular event on a Ring camera, sharing the footage online.

Additional sightings were reported in Pennsylvania, Westlake, Ohio, and Southfield, Michigan, as meteorologist Topper Shutt reassured the public that meteors are harmless and never hit the Earth’s surface, burning up in the atmosphere instead. Scientists estimate that approximately 48 1/2 tons of meteoritic material falls on Earth each day, with meteoroids varying in size.

Fireballs, like the one seen on Wednesday night, are particularly bright meteors that can outshine even Venus. NASA has previously reported a bright fireball across the mid-Atlantic region of the U.S., originating from a small fragment of an asteroid from the Asteroid Belt. The event serves as a reminder of the awe-inspiring wonders of the universe that occasionally grace our night skies.