People throughout the UK have reported seeing several fireballs showering the darkened skies tonight.

The source is likely to be a meteor – space matter disintegrating as it enters the Earth's atmosphere.

Some described hearing a “sonic boom” moments before the flash of light at around 9.54pm.

UK Meteor Network's Twitter site account wrote: "We have received 60 fireball reports this evening."

One of the eyewitnesses responded: "One of those reports is me - I honestly couldn’t believe my eyes!

"Most incredible thing ive ever seen it was like a firework. I’m so excited!!!"

Another wrote: “OK I might be going mad but I swear I just saw like... the brightest shooting star/meteor?

"Looked like a firework but was coming down from the sky?!?! Anyone else in London/Essex see something? Freaked me out.”

A third said: “Just saw a huge #meteor around 21:55 over Manchester. Very impressive.”

And another user added: “Scared all the pheasants out of the forest but a few moments before hand my partner said that were a strange light outside.”

Meanwhile Thomas Page Tweeted: “Did anyone just hear a dull boom? Almost like a sonic boom?”

Wayne Hand said he'd seen a "massive meteoroid" as he was putting the bins out "and it lit up the sky".

A video of the event has emerged which shows the event in all its glory.

In the brief film, a small streak of light can be seen growing in size over the horizon.

As the space rock approaches landfall, you can see it simply burns up and disintegrates.

What is a meteor?

A meteor is a space rock—or meteoroid—that enters Earth's atmosphere.

As the space rock falls toward Earth, the resistance—or drag—of the air on the rock makes it extremely hot.

Fireballs occur when a meteor or another space rock hits the atmosphere.

Air seeps into the pores of the rock, pushing it apart and causing it to explode.

The International Meteor Organisation (IMO) said: “Fireballs are meteors that appear brighter than normal.

"Due to the velocity at which they strike the Earth’s atmosphere, fragments larger than one millimetre have the capability to produce a bright flash as they streak through the heavens above.

“These bright meteors are what we call fireballs and they often strike fear and awe for those who witness them.”

The most famous fireball in modern history came when a meteor exploded over Chelyabinsk in 2013.

The explosion, caused by a 65.6ft (20m) meteor, was so powerful it smashed windows across the city and injured more than 1,000 people.

  • Did you see it? Let us know below.