Fireball, 8 October 2009
On 8 October 2009 at 02:57 UTC, sensors detected a fireball above 4.2°S, 120.6°E, 19.1 km up. It released energy equal to about 33 kilotons of TNT.
The numbers
- Date and time (UTC)
- 8 October 2009, 02:57
- Location
- 4.2°S, 120.6°E
- Height at peak brightness
- 19.1 km
- Speed
- 19.2 km/s (69,120 km/h)
- Light energy radiated
- 1980 × 10¹⁰ joules
- Estimated total energy
- 33 kilotons of TNT
What does that mean?
That is about 2.2 times the energy of the Hiroshima bomb (about 15 kilotons), released harmlessly high in the atmosphere. If the object was stony rock entering at this speed, it was roughly 7.8 metres across and weighed around 750 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
Saw a bright fireball yourself? Report what you saw.