Re: Huge fireball ovr India, Re-entry ?

From: Frank Reed via Seesat-l <seesat-l_at_satobs.org>
Date: 27 Feb 2015 12:43:17 -0800
There are two (plus one) pending reports at amsmeteors.org:
http://amsmeteors.org/members/imo_view/browse_reports?event=PENDING

Both observations list a duration of 1.5 seconds and a brightness of mag.-26 (as bright as the Sun). The reported brightness does not appear to match the few images that have turned up --which look more like "bright as the Moon" level, very roughly, but it's possible. Assuming that the reported durations are anywhere near the truth, that implies a natural meteor at high velocity and perhaps steep trajectory rather than an object re-entering from LEO. On the other hand, it may be that 1.5  seconds is simply the default entry (I didn't check). Also combining this two with a few other reports, it seems to me that the area where this was seen was relatively small, maybe a hundred miles across, which also argues against a re-entry.

By the way, the third report at amsmeteors.org states in the comments that he didn't see it, but learned about it from a television broadcast. So not an actual observation.

Frank Reed
ReedNavigation.com
Conanicut Island USA
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Received on Fri Feb 27 2015 - 14:44:12 UTC

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