Fireball, 4 May 2019
On 4 May 2019 at 15:35 UTC, sensors detected a fireball above 28.4°N, 88.3°W, 26.5 km up. It released energy equal to about 0.081 kilotons of TNT.
The numbers
- Date and time (UTC)
- 4 May 2019, 15:35
- Location
- 28.4°N, 88.3°W
- Height at peak brightness
- 26.5 km
- Speed
- Not released
- Light energy radiated
- 2.24 × 10¹⁰ joules
- Estimated total energy
- 0.081 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 metres across and weighed around 1.7 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
- New Orleans H5, United States · 246 km away
- Grayton H5, United States · 297 km away
- Greenwell Springs LL4, United States · 353 km away
Saw a bright fireball yourself? Report what you saw.