Watch: Meteor streaks through night sky over New England

A bright fireball streaked through the night sky over Portland, Maine, overnight, lighting up the darkness and startling those who saw it. CBS Portland affiliate WGME reports it happened just before 1 a.m. Tuesday. Several police officers caught the meteor on their dashcams and posted the videos online.

"The meteor (or alien spaceship) was caught on camera at approximately 0050 hours. Let's hope the visitors are friendly," the Portland Police Department wrote in a tongue-in-cheek Facebook post.

"As fireball observations go, this one was huge," the Maine Mineral and Gem Museum said in a press release announcing a $20,000 reward for the first person who finds and turns in a meteorite weighing at least one kilogram (2.2 pounds) for the museum to display.

"Based on hundreds of eyewitness accounts collated and analyzed by the American Meteor Society, it's clear that the meteoroid entered Earth's atmosphere over Maine and its terminal explosion occurred about 30 km west of Rangeley, Maine, in Franklin County," the museum wrote.

CBS Boston reports the meteor could be seen as far south as New Jersey and as far north as Nova Scotia. The American Meteor Society posted a stunning photo of it on Twitter, along with a map showing areas where viewers spotted the fireball.