Astronomers say they've caught a rare cosmic snapshot of a fiery meteor hurtling through the sky just east of Toronto on Monday evening.

Cameras belonging to the University of Western Ontario's meteor group first captured the fireball at 6:04 p.m. as it moved northeast over Lake Erie.

Researchers at UWO said the bright fireball disappeared from sight just south of the Ontario town of Selwyn, where they suspect the meteor may have left some souvenirs for nearby residents.

"It is likely to have dropped small meteorites in a region to the east of Selwyn near the eastern end of Upper Stony Lake," the university said in a statement.

By the end of its flight, the UWO astronomers estimate the fiery extraterrestrial rock only weighed a few kilograms.

That's why researchers at UWO and the Royal Ontario Museum say they want to speak with anyone who may have witnessed the space rock passing by, or who may have discovered a piece of the meteor.

"Finding a meteorite from a fireball captured by video is equivalent to a planetary sample return mission," Peter Brown, director of UWO's Centre for Planetary & Space Exploration, said in the statement.

Even the discovery of small meteorite contributes to society's understanding of the solar system in a significant way, he added.

Anyone who thinks they may have a piece of the meteor is asked to contact Kimberly Tait, Associate Curator of Mineralogy at 416.586.5820 or ktait@rom.on.ca