News, views and top stories in your inbox. Don't miss our must-read newsletter Sign up Thank you for subscribing We have more newsletters Show me See our privacy notice Invalid Email

Video Loading Video Unavailable Click to play Tap to play The video will start in 8 Cancel Play now

This is ANOTHER meteor which exploded in the sky - just two hours before a space rock crash-landed in Russia injuring 1,000 people.

The fireball - reportedly followed by a loud explosion some minutes later - was spotted above Cuba at 1am GMT yesterday.

That's 6,000 miles away from Chelyabinsk where a meteor left a 20ft crater and caused a devastating sonic boom at 3.20am GMT.

China's Xinhua news agency reported the bright spot in the sky was spotted in the Cienfuegos area, in central Cuba.

One eyewitness said his house shook slightly in the blast and officials are scouring for any remnants of the object.

Some meteorites can be very valuable, selling for up to £433 per gram depending on their exact composition.

Scientists do not believe the space activity was linked to last night’s 150ft wide asteroid 2012 DA14, which passed within 17,000 miles last night.

The 10-tonne fireball in Russia entered the Earth’s atmosphere faster than the speed of sound.

It caused a devastating sonic boom that ripped through buildings and exploded windows, injuring 1,000 people including 82 children.

The immense pressure of the wave also tore the roof off a factory while some 170,000 square metres of shattered glass will need to be replaced.

Meteors are pieces of space rock, usually from larger comets or asteroids, that burn up on entering Earth’s atmosphere.

Bits that survive are called meteorites.

Video Loading Video Unavailable Click to play Tap to play The video will start in 8 Cancel Play now

The largest known meteorite to hit in recent times was the Tunguska event in 1908.

The blast levelled 2,000sq km of forest in Siberia but no one was hurt.

European Space Agency spokesman Bernhard von Weyhe said experts around the globe are looking at ways to spot potential space threats sooner.

He said: “It’s a global challenge and we need to find a solution.

"But one thing’s for sure, the Bruce Willis ‘Armageddon’ nuclear bomb method won’t work.”