Fireball, 5 August 1995
On 5 August 1995 at 17:14 UTC, sensors detected a fireball above 11.6°N, 104.3°W. It released energy equal to about 0.56 kilotons of TNT.
The numbers
- Date and time (UTC)
- 5 August 1995, 17:14
- Location
- 11.6°N, 104.3°W
- Height at peak brightness
- Not released
- Speed
- Not released
- Light energy radiated
- 20 × 10¹⁰ joules
- Estimated total energy
- 0.56 kilotons of TNT
What does that mean?
That is a small burst by fireball standards: the Chelyabinsk fireball of 2013 released about 440 kilotons. If the object was stony rock entering at a typical 20 km/s, it was roughly 2 metres across and weighed around 12 tonnes.
Most objects of this kind break up and burn away high in the atmosphere, but larger ones can drop small meteorites. About 70% of Earth is ocean, so most fireballs like this fall into the sea.
Known meteorites nearest this point
- Acapulco Acapulcoite, Mexico · 755 km away
Saw a bright fireball yourself? Report what you saw.