Last week, a rare fireball was observed streaking across the sky in broad daylight in northern Maine, prompting experts to offer a financial reward to anyone who can retrieve a piece of the meteorite for further study.

According to NASA, this was the first radar-observed meteorite fall ever witnessed in Maine, NPR reported.

Witnesses reported seeing a bright fireball over New Brunswick, Canada, shortly before noon on Saturday, followed by “loud sonic booms” near Calais, Maine.

The Maine Mineral and Gem Museum highlighted the rarity of the event, as most fireballs are observed at night when their light is visible against the dark sky, in a post on Facebook last Wednesday.

With the use of radar technology, NASA was able to detect the falling of meteorites and estimate where they might have landed.

The agency noted that high winds of up to 100 miles per hour carried smaller meteorites across the Canadian border.

The resulting “strewn field” covers an area of one mile and extends from just north of Waite, Maine to Canoose, New Brunswick, as reported by NPR.

The Maine Mineral and Gem Museum is now encouraging individuals to explore the region and potentially find a piece of the meteorite, for which they are offering a financial reward.

The Maine Mineral and Gem Museum, known for having the world’s largest specimens of the moon and Mars, has announced a reward of $25,000 for the first 1 kilogram of meteorite found in the “strewn field” following the recent fireball sighting.

The museum is also open to purchasing other fragments of the meteorite that are found.

Written by staff