[Thud]

A lot could have been going on at that point. One thing I learned about photo interpretation is that point source light reflections can make things look bigger or brighter than they are. There was also speculation earlier about a hydraulic leak whose fluid trailing from the wing could have looked spectacular.

[freepersup]

One only need think about the flash or color produced by meteorites that are only the size of a grain of sand (sometimes) and how they appear to create quite a trail in the sky.

re: the California video- You can see the shedding debris hesitate as it leaves the ship, is caught in the trailing burble and flutters or loops.