Fireball, 26 March 2020
On 26 March 2020 at 23:27 UTC, sensors detected a fireball above 38.3°S, 23.5°E, 26.5 km up. It released energy equal to about 0.35 kilotons of TNT.
The numbers
- Date and time (UTC)
- 26 March 2020, 23:27
- Location
- 38.3°S, 23.5°E
- Height at peak brightness
- 26.5 km
- Speed
- 20.7 km/s (74,520 km/h)
- Light energy radiated
- 11.8 × 10¹⁰ joules
- Estimated total energy
- 0.35 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 1.6 metres across and weighed around 6.8 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
- Kouga Mountains Iron, IIIAB, South Africa · 523 km away
- Cape of Good Hope Iron, IVB, South Africa · 579 km away
- Merweville L5, South Africa · 638 km away
Saw a bright fireball yourself? Report what you saw.