Social media users in Armenia on Wednesday, May 27 spotted what many described as a “fireball”, traveling at a high speed and entering the Earth’s atmosphere. Director of Byurakan Astrophysical Observatory Areg Mikayelyan now says that a small meteor was most probably spotted in the sky above Armenia.

According to Mikaelyan, as a rule astronomers do not observe small meteors, but only the big ones, which can pose a serious threat to a country or a city.

Small meteors fall pretty frequently and light up the sky, but as they plunge deeper, friction with the atmosphere causes them to ablate, Mikayelyan tells PanARMENIAN.Net.

Most meteors that reach the Earth's atmosphere don't actually make it to the ground. The ones entering the Earth's atmosphere every day are usually tiny and burn up before people even know they exist. The larger ones are those that spectators usually spot, which turn into fireballs in the sky, called bolides.