HISTORIC ARTICLE

Feb 15, 2013 CE: A Screaming Comes Across the Sky

On February 15, 2013, one of the largest meteors ever recorded exploded over Chelyabinsk, Russia.

Grades

9 - 12

Subjects

Earth Science, Astronomy, Meteorology

Image

russianmeteorite

russianmeteorite.jpeg

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On February 15, 2013, a meteor exploded in the air over Chelyabinsk, a region in southern Russia. A meteor is a “space rock” that has crashed into Earth’s atmosphere. Most meteors are tiny and not dangerous. They burn up in the atmosphere, causing their nicknames “shooting star” or “falling star.” The Chelyabinsk meteor was no ordinary meteor, though! It had a mass of about 11,000 metric tons (12,125 short tons) when it entered Earth’s atmosphere. Most of the Chelyabinsk meteor burned up when it exploded in the sky. When the space rock was found at the bottom of a nearby lake, it didn’t even weigh one ton. That’s like going from the weight of more than 1,600 elephants to one crocodile.

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Writer

National Geographic Society

Producer

National Geographic Society

other

Last Updated

October 19, 2023

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