Dashcam Captures Green Fireball Meteor Over Pacific Northwest

On March 25, 2026, dashcam footage surfaced showing a bright green fireball meteor recorded at 6:06 a.m. Monday by a motorist driving in southwestern Washington, about 20 miles north of Portland, Oregon. The early-morning video quickly circulated after the driver posted the clip, drawing attention from regional scientists and national agencies.

The driver, Jason Jenkins, said he was heading to work before dawn when the streak crossed the sky; he initially suspected a comet and then compared the flash to lightning because of its intensity. Jenkins’ dashboard camera caught the event, though he said the recording understates how close and brilliant the object appeared. Officials at the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry described the sighting as a classic fireball — a very bright meteor visible at high altitudes — and said the dark pre-dawn conditions increased its visibility. Museum director Jim Todd noted that multiple videos and eyewitness accounts could allow investigators to reconstruct the path and determine whether any fragments reached the ground.

NASA has reported several recent bright meteors around the country, including a multi-state fireball from an estimated seven-ton object over Ohio that produced small recoverable fragments and a one-ton meteor that broke apart north of Houston at roughly 35,000 miles per hour. The museum explained the green hue often appears when vaporized magnesium (and sometimes nickel) glows in the atmosphere. Jenkins, who bought the dashcam for safety reasons, said he plans to keep it after capturing the event.