Fireball, 4 January 1997
On 4 January 1997 at 06:46 UTC, sensors detected a fireball above 25.7°N, 5.3°W. It released energy equal to about 0.14 kilotons of TNT.
The numbers
- Date and time (UTC)
- 4 January 1997, 06:46
- Location
- 25.7°N, 5.3°W
- Height at peak brightness
- Not released
- Speed
- Not released
- Light energy radiated
- 4.3 × 10¹⁰ joules
- Estimated total energy
- 0.14 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 1.2 metres across and weighed around 2.9 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
- Chergach H5, Mali · 225 km away
- Northwest Africa 512 L4, Mali · 235 km away
- Northwest Africa 513 L4/5, Mali · 235 km away
Saw a bright fireball yourself? Report what you saw.