Fireball, 3 June 2000
On 3 June 2000 at 03:24 UTC, sensors detected a fireball above 36.8°N, 74.8°W. It released energy equal to about 0.1 kilotons of TNT.
The numbers
- Date and time (UTC)
- 3 June 2000, 03:24
- Location
- 36.8°N, 74.8°W
- Height at peak brightness
- Not released
- Speed
- Not released
- Light energy radiated
- 3 × 10¹⁰ joules
- Estimated total energy
- 0.1 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 1.1 metres across and weighed around 2.1 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
- Norfolk Iron, IIIAB, United States · 134 km away
- Sharps H3.4, United States · 204 km away
- St. Mary's County LL3.3, United States · 206 km away
Saw a bright fireball yourself? Report what you saw.