Fireball, 7 October 2007
On 7 October 2007 at 13:31 UTC, sensors detected a fireball above 35.2°S, 125.6°E. It released energy equal to about 0.19 kilotons of TNT.
The numbers
- Date and time (UTC)
- 7 October 2007, 13:31
- Location
- 35.2°S, 125.6°E
- Height at peak brightness
- Not released
- Speed
- Not released
- Light energy radiated
- 5.8 × 10¹⁰ joules
- Estimated total energy
- 0.19 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 1.4 metres across and weighed around 4 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
- Cardanumbi L5, Australia · 345 km away
- Virginia 001 L6, Australia · 351 km away
- Burnabbie H5, Australia · 354 km away
Saw a bright fireball yourself? Report what you saw.