Fireball, 4 November 2014
On 4 November 2014 at 20:13 UTC, sensors detected a fireball above 43.1°N, 115.8°E, 22.2 km up. It released energy equal to about 0.42 kilotons of TNT.
The numbers
- Date and time (UTC)
- 4 November 2014, 20:13
- Location
- 43.1°N, 115.8°E
- Height at peak brightness
- 22.2 km
- Speed
- 16 km/s (57,600 km/h)
- Light energy radiated
- 14.4 × 10¹⁰ joules
- Estimated total energy
- 0.42 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 2.1 metres across and weighed around 14 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
- Shangdu Iron, IIIAB, China · 161 km away
- Xi Ujimgin L/LL6-an, China · 221 km away
- Palinshih Iron, China · 232 km away
Saw a bright fireball yourself? Report what you saw.