Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Letter
  • Published:

The orbit and atmospheric trajectory of the Peekskill meteorite from video records

Nature volume 367, pages 624–626 (1994)Cite this article

Abstract

ON 9 October 1992, a bright fireball appeared over West Virginia, travelled some 700 km in a northeasterly direction, and culminated in at least one impact: a 12.4-kg ordinary chondrite was recovered in Peekskill, New York1. Fortuitously, the event was captured on several video recordings, which provide a detailed record of both the fragmentation of the object and related atmospheric effects. These are the first motion pictures of a fireball from which a meteorite has been recovered. We report here the preliminary analysis of 14 video recordings of the event, from which we determine the ground path and the original orbit of the object.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on Springer Link
  • Instant access to full article PDF
Buy now

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Wlotzka, F. Meteoritical Bull. No. 75, Meteoritics 28(5), 692–703 (1993).

    Google Scholar 

  2. Morrison, D. (ed.) The Spaceguard Survey (NASA, 1992) (JPL-Pasadena, California, 1992).

  3. Chyba, F. F., thomas, P. J. & Zahnle, K. J. Nature 361, 40–44 (1993).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  4. Hills, J. G. & Goda, M. P. Astr. J. 105, 1114–1144 (1993).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  5. Ceplecha, Z. Bull. astr. Insts Czech. 12, 21–47 (1961).

    ADS  Google Scholar 

  6. McCrosky, R. E., Posen, A. & Shao, C-Y. J. geophys. Res. 76, 4090–4108 (1971).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  7. Halliday, I., Blackwell, A. T. & Griffin, A. A. J. R. astr. Soc. Can. 72, 15–39 (1978).

    ADS  Google Scholar 

  8. Ceplecha, Z. Bull. astr. Insts Czech. 38, 222–234 (1987).

    ADS  Google Scholar 

  9. Borovicka, J. Bull. astr. Insts Czech. 41, 391–396 (1990).

    ADS  Google Scholar 

  10. Ceplecha, Z. Bull. astr. Insts Czech. 30, 349–356 (1979).

    ADS  Google Scholar 

  11. Halliday, I. Smithson. Contr. Astrophys. 7, 161–169 (1963).

    ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Aslanov, S. K. & Kramer, E. N. Astr. Vest. 26, 125–129 (1992).

    ADS  Google Scholar 

  13. Wetherill, G. W. & Revelle, D. O. Icarus 48, 308–328 (1981).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physics,

    P. Brown

  2. Department of Astronomy, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, N6A 3K7, Canada

    M. Beech

  3. Ondrejov Observatory, Astronomical Institute of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Ondrejov, 25165, Czech Republic

    Z. Ceplecha

  4. Department of Physics, Enginering & Geology, Mount Allison University, Sackville, New Brunswick, EOA 3CO, Canada

    R. L. Hawkes & K. Mossman

  5. Carnegie Institution of Washington, Department of Terrestrial Magnetism, 5241 Broad Branch Road NW, Washington DC, 20015, USA

    G. Wetherill

Authors
  1. P. Brown
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Z. Ceplecha
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. R. L. Hawkes
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. G. Wetherill
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. M. Beech
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. K. Mossman
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Brown, P., Ceplecha, Z., Hawkes, R. et al. The orbit and atmospheric trajectory of the Peekskill meteorite from video records. Nature 367, 624–626 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1038/367624a0

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/367624a0

This article is cited by

Comments

By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.

Search

Advanced search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing