Melbourne ‘meteor’ – huge boom and ‘earthquake’ felt after ‘comet’ streaks across the sky

SOCIAL media users have gone into a frenzy over what appeared to be a comet burning across the sky.

Dozens in Melbourne also claimed they felt the ground shake shortly after seeing the odd sight.

Video taken after midnight shows a large glowing object shooting across the night sky as onlookers stood stunned.

One social media user said: “Eyewitness reports now on radio saying there was a loud explosion in the sky over Melbourne just after midnight. Possible meteor or space junk.”

Geoscience Australia, an Australian Government Agency which monitors seismic activity, tweeted that they had received reports of movement around midnight.

They said: “Geoscience Australia received multiple felt reports from Melbourne, Victoria at around 12:00 am (AEST).

“We identified seismic signals near north-west Melbourne, but with insufficient data for publication to the EQ@GA website.”

Many were quick to guess what the seismic shake could have been, and if it was related to the “comet”.

One user said: “Meteor or rogue space-junk/rocket landing? People here have posted vids/pics of same at same time and describing tremor feeling as it landed.”

Another responded to a video of the “comet” or “meteor” and said: “So glad you videoed it, thought I was losing my mind. Felt a thud through the house.”

One woman added: “We were on the beach in Ocean Grove and it felt so close to us! Like right above us.

“We weren’t quick enough to video it but it was definitely going north to south. Initially we thought it was a firework shooting us it was that close!”

Last year, a huge meteor wowed onlookers as a fireball streaked across the sky.

Many people mistook the dazzling shooting star for a UFO.

Paula Leonard, from Hull, said: “It was a big green ball of light with a long white tail.

“Initially I thought it was a firework but it was too big and travelling downwards.”

Meteors are space rocks that blaze in the Earth’s atmosphere.

One that exploded about four miles up in 1908 devastated the remote Tunguska area in Siberia with a 12 megaton blast.