On February 15, 2013, a near-Earth asteroid, 10,000 tons in mass and 56 feet wid

Question

On February 15, 2013, a
near-Earth asteroid, 10,000 tons in mass and 56 feet wide, entered Earth's atmosphere over Chelyabinsk, Russia with an estimated speed of 18.6 km/s (over 41,000 mph), almost 60 times the speed of sound. It quickly became a brilliant meteor which was brighter than the sun and eyewitnesses felt intense heat from the meteor. Fortunately, the meteor exploded about 20 km above ground and no deaths were reported. Nevertheless, some 7,200 buildings in six cities across the region were damaged by the explosion's shock waveabout and 1,500 people required medical treatment. What would have been the damage had this meteor actually hit the ground? How does this meteor compare to the Tunguska bolide of 1908? Compare the energy released by the Chelyabinsk meteor to that of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombs.

Explanation / Answer

The impact would have increased the damage. The meteor of Chelyabinsk, Russia blasted 27 km up in air and the fragments made it up to the grounds the impact of fragments was destructive, it was about 26-33 times bigger than Hiroshima bomb. The meteor was 20 meters.

The Tunguska bolide was the largest impact event of Earth history, the meteoroid's size, on the order of 60 to 190 meters. The energy released by this impact event was 1000 times more than Hiroshima bomb. Although this event is recorded as impact event the meteor was supposed to e blasted 5-6 km in the atmosphere.

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