Fireball, 5 June 2016
On 5 June 2016 at 06:12 UTC, sensors detected a fireball above 17.4°S, 138.3°E, 28.7 km up. It released energy equal to about 0.89 kilotons of TNT.
The numbers
- Date and time (UTC)
- 5 June 2016, 06:12
- Location
- 17.4°S, 138.3°E
- Height at peak brightness
- 28.7 km
- Speed
- 14.5 km/s (52,200 km/h)
- Light energy radiated
- 33.8 × 10¹⁰ joules
- Estimated total energy
- 0.89 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 2.8 metres across and weighed around 35 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
- Tawallah Valley Iron, IVB, Australia · 338 km away
- King Solomon Iron, Australia · 399 km away
- Roper River Iron, IIIAB, Australia · 442 km away
Saw a bright fireball yourself? Report what you saw.