By Hazarry bin Haji Ali Ahmad
The Astronomical Society of Brunei Darussalam
June 14, 2026

Bandar Seri Begawan – Bruneians were fortunate on Sunday evening to witness a rare and striking celestial show. At approximately 8:30 p.m. local time on June 14, 2026, a brilliantly bright green meteor tore through the atmosphere, leaving a vivid, glowing trail in its wake.

The Astronomical Society of Brunei Darussalam (PABD) received a surge of reports, dashboard camera footage, and incidental videos capturing the event, confirming the meteor’s trajectory and striking coloration.

Based on the initial reports submitted to PABD, the meteor appeared unusually large -consistent with a fireball – travelling at high velocity and illuminating the sky for approximately two to three seconds before fading. None of the witnesses reported any signs of fragmentation as it passed through the atmosphere. Instead, they described a sudden, vivid emerald flash that briefly lit up the night sky.

Among the locals who captured the breathtaking moment was Umair Akmal, who caught the event at 8:33 p.m. on his dashcam while driving through Lambak. He described the meteor as a solid green streak with a distinct trail that lasted for about two seconds. Struck by the rarity of the event, Umair noted that the bright green hue made it one of the most unusual celestial sights he had ever personally witnessed.

Around the same time, 27-year-old Khadijah Azami also recorded the fireball on her car camcorder while driving through Sungai Akar, heading toward the ISB-One City traffic light. She observed the meteor traveling in a southwest direction, describing the object as big, fast, and vividly green. Khadijah noted that the vibrant color was accompanied by a distinct, bright white flash as it flared up over a three-second span.

In astronomical terms, not every “shooting star” qualifies as a fireball. According to the International Astronomical Union (IAU), a fireball is defined as a meteor that reaches an apparent magnitude of –4 or brighter, exceeding the brilliance of Venus. All of eyewitnesses’ footages captured clearly demonstrates why Sunday’s event meets this criterion.

In another fortunate turn, Shahrazen Said shared a video captured by one of his team members, who recorded the fireball entirely by chance. In his Instagram Story caption, he explained that while filming footage for the football event Project WASP: The Next Level Training, the bright green object descended above the treeline and passed through the background of the shot. He later submitted the remarkable footage to PABD’s Instagram page, noting his surprise at having unintentionally recorded what he initially thought might be a comet falling from the sky.

While sightings of ordinary “shooting stars” are relatively common, the appearance of a bright green fireball is a far more exceptional phenomenon. Its distinctive colour is closely linked to the meteoroid’s chemical composition. As the object enters Earth’s atmosphere at extremely high velocity, the resulting friction generates intense heat, causing the meteoroid to vaporize. The vivid green emission is typically associated with the presence of magnesium or nickel within the material. When these metallic elements vaporize under extreme temperatures, they emit light predominantly in the green portion of the spectrum. This process produces the striking emerald trail reported across Brunei tonight.

The PABD is still actively collecting data to triangulate the exact size and trajectory of Sunday night’s fireball. Anyone who witnessed the green meteor or has dashcam or CCTV footage from around 8:30 p.m. is strongly encouraged to submit an official fireball report to the International Meteor Organization (IMO). By contributing to the IMO’s global citizen-science database, local observers can directly aid astronomers worldwide in tracking these incredible celestial events.