Mysterious Fireballs Illuminate Brazilian Skies: Space Junk or Something More?

Residents of several Brazilian states witnessed a spectacular display of lights in the night sky on Wednesday, May 14th, 2025. The bright flashes, initially believed to be meteors, were later identified by experts at the Federal University of Minas Gerais as space debris. "At first, we thought it was a meteor shower," said one resident of Brasília. "But it moved too slowly." The debris is believed to be part of a Falcon 9 rocket stage launched in 2014. The event highlights the increasing amount of space junk orbiting Earth and the potential for such debris to create stunning, yet potentially hazardous, light shows. The relatively low speed of the object, compared to the speed of meteors, enabled experts to quickly determine its origin. This incident serves as a reminder of the growing need for better space debris tracking and mitigation strategies.