A bright #fireball crossed the evening sky over north-western Europe on Sunday and was widely observed across Belgium, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Germany. The object was detected by the #AllSky7 network, a system of automated sky cameras used to track #meteors and recover #meteorites. Using multiple recordings, researchers reconstructed the #trajectory of the incoming #meteoroid.
The object was first detected at an altitude of about 85 km, where atmospheric entry produced intense heating and light emission. During its approximately six-second passage, several flashes occurred as the body fragmented. Each fragmentation event likely produced between 10 and 100 #meteorites, meaning the original body broke into many pieces during #atmosphericEntry.
Based on brightness and duration, astronomers estimate the original #meteoroid had a diameter of roughly 1–3 meters. Objects of this size impact Earth relatively frequently, approximately once every two weeks, although most fall into oceans or sparsely populated regions.
Fragments slowed rapidly due to #atmosphericDrag, reducing their velocity from initial ~61,000 km/h in space to roughly ≤700 km/h before reaching the ground. Despite this deceleration, surviving #meteorites can still cause structural damage.
In this case, at least one fragment struck a house in Koblenz (Germany), penetrating the roof and landing inside a bedroom that was fortunately unoccupied. No injuries were reported. The unusual aspect of the event is therefore the impact occurring in a populated urban area, whereas most meteorite falls occur unnoticed in remote regions.
The calculated fall zone is now being searched by meteorite hunters and scientists, as recovered fragments may provide #cosmochemistry evidence about the early #SolarSystem and the composition of #asteroids.
https://www.nytimes.com/es/2026/03/10/espanol/ciencia-y-tecnologia/meteorito-alemania.html?smid=whatsapp-nytes
Daniel Fischer
UberZeitgeist
RTN
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