Fireball, 10 November 2003
On 10 November 2003 at 13:54 UTC, sensors detected a fireball above 64.5°S, 136.2°E, 23 km up. It released energy equal to about 1.3 kilotons of TNT.
The numbers
- Date and time (UTC)
- 10 November 2003, 13:54
- Location
- 64.5°S, 136.2°E
- Height at peak brightness
- 23 km
- Speed
- 20.1 km/s (72,360 km/h)
- Light energy radiated
- 51.8 × 10¹⁰ joules
- Estimated total energy
- 1.3 kilotons of TNT
What does that mean?
That is a large burst by fireball standards: the Chelyabinsk fireball of 2013 released about 440 kilotons. If the object was stony rock entering at this speed, it was roughly 2.6 metres across and weighed around 27 tonnes.
It penetrated deep into the atmosphere, which makes it more likely that fragments reached the ground as meteorites. About 70% of Earth is ocean, so most fireballs like this fall into the sea.
Known meteorites nearest this point
- Adelie Land L5, Antarctica · 410 km away
Saw a bright fireball yourself? Report what you saw.