[meteorite-list] Do Meteoroids "Skip"?

From: bernd.pauli at paulinet.de <bernd.pauli_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: 02 Apr 2008 16:00:18 UT
Message-ID: <DIIE.000000B20000285E_at_paulinet.de>

Hi Anita, Chris, and List,

Chris wrote: "...Rarely it may be a true skip in the atmosphere, but
more likely it is something to do with the way the object breaks up"

The light path of the Vilna, Canada (L5) meteorite in 1967 is an interesting
case in this context. Fortunately, an auroral all-sky camera accurately tracked
the fireball which pulsed in intensity, probably because it rotated and after its
terminal explosion, there was a shower of red sparks. Only 48 mg + 94 mg were
recovered!

Another excellent example is the fireball over Jackson Lake, Wyoming, August 10,
1972, when a mass of about 4,000 metrical tons literally skipped over the upper layers
of the atmosphere and then bounced back into space.

Bernd
Received on Wed 02 Apr 2008 12:00:18 PM PDT