The public was treated to a visual phenomenon when a meteor was spotted falling near the slopes of the erupting Mayon Volcano earlier this week.
Clips of the meteor striking near the Albay-based stratovolcano went viral as the phenomenon caused a streak of bright green light to suddenly appear on a livestream capturing Mayon’s effusive eruption.
According to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs), the incident happened at 10:33 p.m. on Monday, May 26.
It said the meteor disintegrated in the atmosphere and did not strike the volcano’s slopes, contrary to its initial claim.
“Apparently, there’s a volcano erupting right now in the Philippines. I’m watching a livestream when suddenly, there’s this extremely bright green fireball coming from a completely unrelated trajectory. Is that a meteor?” an online user said last week.
Apparently there’s a volcano erupting right now in the Philippines. I’m watching a livestream when suddenly there’s this extremely bright green fireball coming from a completely unrelated trajectory. Is that a meteor? pic.twitter.com/D6fNJ4nOOQ
— Bekay (@kinpatsukenshi) May 25, 2026
The post has garnered six million views, 87,000 likes, 12,000 bookmarks, 10,000 reposts and 1,100 replies.
Phivolcs also posted a clip of its footage on social media.
LOOK!!! PHIVOLCS’ Ligñon Hill IP Camera records a meteor striking the northern slopes of Mayon Volcano at 10:33 PM this evening, 25 May 2026.#MayonVolcano pic.twitter.com/sZdTVIxssz
— PHIVOLCS-DOST (@phivolcs_dost) May 25, 2026
An online user in the Threads platform also shared photos of the phenomenon, saying he heard a loud explosion.
“I heard a big BOOOOOOM 10 seconds ago!! And saw a meteor hitting Mt. Mayon!!” he exclaimed.
View on Threads
The phenomenon was likewise discussed in a Reddit community.
“Fire in the sky, fire on the mountain: Meteor over Mayon Volcano,” a Redditor said in the “r/Philippines” community.
Fire in the sky, fire on the mountain: meteor over Mayon Volcano
by
u/ijuander_ in
Philippines
The Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA) confirmed that the phenomenon was caused by a meteor entering the atmosphere, saying that it “often produces a brilliant flash of light.”
“While meteors or space rocks enter Earth’s atmosphere daily, the vast majority burn up completely before reaching the ground. Meteors usually burn up at altitudes 60 to 100 kilometers above sea level. As they plunge through the atmosphere at extreme speeds, friction heats them so intensely that they vaporize,” it said in an advisory.
“As they plunge through the atmosphere at extreme speeds, friction heats them so intensely that they vaporize. This heat also ionizes the air molecules around them, creating the bright, glowing streak we see as ‘shooting stars.’ Fragments that are large enough to survive atmospheric entry and hit the ground are classified as meteorites,” PhilSA added.
The Mayon Volcano is currently at Alert Level 3, which means it is in “intensified unrest” or “magmatic unrest.”
It is experiencing a lava effusion with lava flow on certain gullies, with episodic minor strombolian activity.
