We shot this and several other photos 1:45 am CST on November 17, 1998
After the enormous Bolide Meteor shot overhead and exploded, it left a trail.
This was the first of 5 images in a series. This was a 5 minute exposure that began within one minute of the actual bolide's crossing. It was cropped from the full-circle horizon to horizon 360 degree image we took similar to those found on our main Leonid page. On processing, we were immediately struck by the apparant facelike image that appeared in this shot. Many other amateur astronomers in the tri-state area would talk about this enormous once in a lifetime meteor.

Area astronomers would try to collect images from multiple locations to attempt to triangulate the exact location and altitude of this meteor when it exploded in our atmosphere. Unfortunately, since we were the only ones with a photo of the actual meteor, all that our fellow astronomers had to work with were photos of these sky trails left behind.

No other astronomers recall seeing this face image or have noted it's appearance in their photos.

You decide what you see.