Fireball, 8 January 2014
On 8 January 2014 at 17:05 UTC, sensors detected a fireball above 1.2°S, 147.1°E, 18.7 km up. It released energy equal to about 0.13 kilotons of TNT.
The numbers
- Date and time (UTC)
- 8 January 2014, 17:05
- Location
- 1.2°S, 147.1°E
- Height at peak brightness
- 18.7 km
- Speed
- 44.8 km/s (161,280 km/h)
- Light energy radiated
- 3.82 × 10¹⁰ joules
- Estimated total energy
- 0.13 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 this speed, it was roughly 70 cm across and weighed around 540 kg.
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
- Dyarrl Island Mesosiderite-A1, Papua New Guinea · 477 km away
- Ijopega H6, Papua New Guinea · 571 km away
Saw a bright fireball yourself? Report what you saw.