A very small earth-bound asteroid has exploded as a fireball in mid-air before landing in Germany, NASA reports.

The U.S. space agency said the 3 foot-sized asteroid disintegrated harmlessly over Germany on January 21, one and a half hours before it would have impacted Earth’s atmosphere.

NASA’s Scout impact hazard assessment system, which monitors data on potential asteroid discoveries, gave advance warning as to where and when the asteroid would impact.

This is the eighth time in history that a small Earth-bound asteroid has been detected while still in space, before entering and disintegrating in earth’s atmosphere.

The asteroid’s impact produced a bright fireball, known as bolide, which was seen from as far away as the Czech Republic and may have scattered small meteorites on the ground at the impact site about 37 miles west of Berlin.

Since the asteroid disintegrated over a relatively populated part of the world, many photos and videos of the fireball were posted online minutes after the event.