6 Apr 2016

Green streak lights up North Island skies

8:17 pm on 6 April 2016

A Wellington man has captured a "once in a lifetime" photograph of a bright green meteor seen across the North Island.

Jono Matla said he luckily took the photo just before the meteor arrived.

The meteor streaking across the sky was photographed by Jono Matla in Waikanae.

The meteor streaking across the sky was photographed by Jono Matla in Waikanae. Photo: Jono Matla

"I pressed the button, looked up, and saw this green thing fly across the sky and was lucky enough to catch it," he said.

"A second later, I wouldn't have got it properly."

The meteor hit the Earth's atmosphere about 9pm last night.

Mr Matla had been at Waikanae beach, north of Wellington when he snapped the photo, but the meteor itself was seen across the North Island including up to Auckland, and as far south as Nelson.

Mr Matla said he was using a Canon 6D camera with a 50mm lens, and had been a photographer since 2012.

He said it was a once in a lifetime experience.

Get the RNZ app

for ad-free news and current affairs