[meteorite-list] Bolides

From: Alexander Seidel <gsac_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Tue Jan 17 13:16:31 2006
Message-ID: <24051.1137521788_at_www73.gmx.net>

> Speaking of the Grand Teton
> http://fireball.meteorite.free.fr/1972_08_11/Video/video_g-t.html
> http://fireball.meteorite.free.fr/1972_08_11/Video/video_g-t.html
> Assuming it was a stony (since most meteorites are) would anyone care to
> guess at the mass behind the show?

Hi Pete,

following up on your mail were estimates of the sizes of the respective
objects.

Compared to them, the very well photodocumented Neuschwanstein fall of April
2002 was somewhat smaller, with an initial mass of about 300 kg, which
clearly is a submetersized object, may be something the size of a small
"ball" of 50 or 60 cm or so in diameter. This one reached a peak brightness
of -17 mag, left a glowing trail of 5.3 sec along a track of 90.6 km (56
mi), coming down at an angle of 40 degrees (towards vertical) and losing
more than 90 % of the initial mass during that phase, leaving a rest of
probably less than 20 kg, which broke into several fragments at at height of
22 km (approximately 14 mi), and dropping meteorites about 2 min of dark
flight later, three of which were found (1.75 kg, 1.6 kg and 2.8 kg) within
the pre-calculated strewnfield.

Alex
Berlin/Germany
Received on Tue 17 Jan 2006 01:16:28 PM PST