[meteorite-list] Observed Falls & Calculated Orbits

From: Bernd Pauli HD <bernd.pauli_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu Apr 22 09:48:14 2004
Message-ID: <3BDBDCD7.B8176CD1_at_lehrer1.rz.uni-karlsruhe.de>

Rhett Bourland wrote:

> I've read that Tagish Lake may have
> had its orbit determined as well.


01) University Of Calgary Press Release / Dennis
      Urquhart Research Communications / May 31, 2000:


Using eyewitness and photographic data gathered during the field
investigations, and observations from two US Department of Defense
satellite systems, the trajectory and velocity of the fireball were
determined. The ability to calculate this is a relatively new
development in meteorite science - essentially allowing researchers
to determine a meteorite's pre-fall size, orbit and origin in space.

The fireball was also observed by satellites in Earth orbit, maintained
by the U.S. Department of Defense (D of D). These observations
established an asteroid weighing 200 tonnes and approximately five
metres across had impacted the Earth's atmosphere. Data from D of D
satellites were available within hours of the event, the quickest
any such data have been released after a bolide event by the D of D.


02) Arctic Asteroid! (The Tagish Lake Meteorite)
     Date: Thu, 1 Jun 2000 17:18:40 GMT
     From: Ron Baalke <BAALKE_at_kelvin.jpl.nasa.gov>


"The data we have now indicates the object followed a low-inclination
orbit coming from the asteroid belt," says Brown. "Its incoming velocity
was 15-16 km/s -- if we can pinpoint the velocity with a precision a few
hundred m/s, we might be able to tell which asteroid family this object
came from. So far we know that the object has a typically asteroidal
orbit, though it is remotely possible that it might be related to short-
period comets."


Best wishes,

Bernd
Received on Sun 28 Oct 2001 05:24:23 AM PST