Superbolides

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Exceptionally luminous meteors that create brilliant fireballs visible across wide areas during atmospheric entry
2. Meteors of exceptional brightness that generate intensely glowing fireballs as they pass through the atmosphere
3. Extremely bright meteoric objects that produce striking fireballs and may leave visible smoke trails across the sky

Etymology: This is the plural of "superbolide," an exceptionally bright meteor, often one that explodes in the atmosphere. The base word, "bolide," reaches English through French from Latin "bolis," borrowed from Greek "bolis," meaning a missile or a flash of lightning, which derives from "ballein," to throw. The prefix "super-" is the Latin word for "above" or "beyond," so the compound describes a bolide that outshines ordinary ones.

Synonyms: fireballs, meteorites, bolides