meteoric
Dazzlingly fast, fleeting
Meteoric describes something that rises with dramatic speed and brilliance, like a meteor streaking across the sky: her meteoric rise to fame, a meteoric career.
The word emphasizes sudden, spectacular ascent—though meteors actually fall, the image that stuck is their brief, blazing visibility.
In astronomy, meteoric refers literally to meteors: meteoric debris, meteoric iron.
Icy orbiting body
- asteroidSun-orbiting rocky mass
- fireballLuminous meteor or explosion
- shooting starBurning debris in atmosphere
- bolideDetonating meteor, very bright
meteoroid · crater · impact · streak · atmosphere · burning · trail · flash
Short in duration
- transientTemporary, soon departing
- short-livedLasting only briefly
- flash in the panShort-lived success
- passingMoving by or temporary
momentary · ephemeral · evanescent · fading · vanishing · temporary · impermanent · flameout
Burning very brightly
- dazzlingOverwhelmingly bright or impressive
- incandescentGlowing from heat
- luminousEmitting or reflecting light
- radiantEmitting light or joy
fiery · glowing · streaking · flashing · bright · spectacular · vivid · scintillating
Public recognition, widespread
- stardomCelebrity status achieved
- breakthroughSudden important advance
- phenomenonExtraordinary observable occurrence
- overnight successRapid rise to fame
skyrocket · surge · explosion · prominence · ascendancy · trajectory · career · sudden
comet
Icy orbiting body
- asteroidSun-orbiting rocky mass
- fireballLuminous meteor or explosion
- shooting starBurning debris in atmosphere
bolide · meteoroid · crater · impact · streak · atmosphere · burning · trail · flash · space debris
brief
Short in duration
- transientTemporary, soon departing
- short-livedLasting only briefly
- flash in the panShort-lived success
passing · momentary · ephemeral · evanescent · fading · vanishing · temporary · impermanent · flameout · peaking
blazing
Burning very brightly
- dazzlingOverwhelmingly bright or impressive
- incandescentGlowing from heat
- luminousEmitting or reflecting light
radiant · fiery · glowing · streaking · flashing · bright · spectacular · vivid · scintillating · gleaming
fame
Public recognition, widespread
- stardomCelebrity status achieved
- breakthroughSudden important advance
- phenomenonExtraordinary observable occurrence
overnight success · skyrocket · surge · explosion · prominence · ascendancy · trajectory · career · sudden · spectacular
meteoricgradual
Developing slowly over time
slow · incremental · plodding · steady · measured
meteoricsteady
Fixed, not fluctuating
unremarkable · unspectacular · undramatic · methodical · humble
- meteor showerBurst of falling stars
- meteor impactExtraterrestrial object striking surface
- meteor strikeExtraterrestrial object hitting surface
- TV meteorologistBroadcast climate forecaster
- meteor burstCelestial fragment's fiery entry
- meteorite impactsSpace rocks hitting planetary surfaces
meteor, meteors, meteorite, meteorologist, meteorology, meteorites, meteorological, meteorically