Reports Report 266ej (Event 266-2016)

This report has been linked to the following event: Event 266-2016
Observer
NameSteven S
Experience Level3/5
RemarksI first posted this occurrence on a NASA site; and I'm not exactly sure of the time of day I've posted here, though I know it was after 10 am on that Sunday morning. We'd just left my mother-in-law's home in New Smyrna and were headed north on Interstate 95 to visit my father in Ormond Beach. At the time of the siting, my exact coordinates were: 29 05 06.0N 081 01 00.0W. I know this because I'm an engineer with the Florida Department of Transportation and we had just passed one of my tower sites with those coordinates on the east side of the northbound lane of the highway; therefore, my location is fairly accurate.It appeared to cross my windshield from almost directly in front of my at an elevation of 55 degrees, to the lower left of my windshield at an elevation of 15-20 degrees.All three of us - my wife (also an engineer) my son (a 10-year-old with 'eagle eyes') and myself - saw it at once!The object was so bright that I initially thought it was a de-orbited satellite. I'm an avid observer of visible satellites and it was brighter than any IRIDIUM flare I've ever seen! I've seen meteor showers at night, but had not seen a daytime fireball until this event; nor had I ever seen anything as bright. It also looked as though it might have come down locally; from my perspective, in the area just west of the intersection of Interstate 95 and Interstate 4. Based on the finding of those fragments in north Florida west of Jacksonville (in direct line with my observations) I'm clearly mistaken. It must have been quite large for me to have seen it over 100 miles away.Many thanks,Steve
Location
AddressPort Orange, FL
Latitude29° 5' 14.11'' N (29.09°)
Longitude 81° 1' 7.04'' W (-81.02°)
Elevation5.56m
Time and Duration
Local Date & Time2016-01-24 10:24 EDT
UT Date & Time2016-01-24 15:24 UT
Duration≈3.5s
Direction
Moving directionFrom up right to down left
Descent Angle220°
Moving
Facing azimuth335°
First azimuth345°
First elevation55°
Last azimuth315°
Last elevation22°
Brightness and color
Stellar Magnitude-27
ColorWhite
Concurrent Sound
ObservationUnknown
Remarks-
Delayed Sound
ObservationUnknown
Remarks-
Persistent train
ObservationYes
Duration2s
Length12°
Remarksa black smoke trail
Terminal flash
ObservationYes
RemarksBody of the object appeared to break up into 2-3 large pieces; the largest glowed white-hot, then flamed out.
Fragmentation
ObservationYes
RemarksAs the object neared it's termination, I saw it break up into 2-3 pieces; with one larger than the other two.