Meteor which stunned the world when it struck the moon during January’s total eclipse was travelling at 38,000 mph, scientists find
- The space rock hit the moon with enough power to make a 50 feet across crater
- Which is the equivalent of two double decker buses placed side to side
- It caused a flash that lasting 0.28 second even captured by amateur cameras
- The debris ejected may have reached a peak temperature of 5400 degrees Celsius, roughly the same as the surface of the Sun
The world was watching a lunar eclipse on January 21 when a meteorite struck the moon at 38,000 mph (61, 000 kph).
This astronomical projectile caught the eye of star-gazers and now scientists have calculated its exact speed on impact.
Researchers calculated that the incoming rock had a mass of 100 pounds (45kg), measured 1-2 feet (30 to 60cm) across, and likely left a crater up to 49 feet (15 meters) in diameter.
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The meteorite that struck the moon on January 21st 2019 during the lunar eclipse was travelling at 38,000 mph (61, 000 kph), scientists have revealed. Sky-gazers watching the eclipse were also treated to the sight of an asteroid impact (point shown by the arrow)
Professor Jose Maria Madiedo of the University of Huelva, and Dr Jose Ortiz of the Institute of Astrophysics of Andalusia made the latest calculations.
The two academics operate the Moon Impacts Detection and Analysis System (MIDAS) which used eight telescopes in the south of Spain.
Video footage from MIDAS recorded the moment of impact.
Professor Madiedo said: ‘Something inside of me told me that this time would be the time’, said Madiedo, who was impressed when he observed the event, as it was brighter than most of the events regularly detected by the survey.
At the time of the event, Professor Madiedo tweeted out footage of the incredible phenomenon not long after the eclipse.
The impact occurred during totality – when the face of the moon glowed an eerie blood red.
While it was over in the blink of an eye, telescopes from the MIDAS survey were watching all the while and documented the fleeting event.
Professor Madiedo spotted it at 5:41 am Spanish local time.
The so-called ‘super blood wolf moon’ was the first full moon of 2019, and brought the last total lunar eclipse we’ll see until May 26, 2021.
Researchers have calculated that the incoming rock had a mass of 99lbs (45kg), measured 1-2 feet (30 to 60cm) across, and likely left a crater up to 49 feet (15 meters) across. The impact was captured by Jamie Cooper, 49, from Northamptonshire while photographing the eclipse
A meteoroid had as much force as between 0.9 and 1.8 tons of dynamite, scientist have previously said.
The debris ejected may have reached a peak temperature of 5400 degrees Celsius, roughly the same as the surface of the Sun.
The space rock had previously been estimated by researchers from Colombia and the Dominican Republic who published their findings in the journal Icarus and posted on Cornell University’s pre-print server.
They estimated impact speeds of around 30,890 mph (50,000 kph), but the latest report from Spanish academics have stated a higher figure of 37, 903.643 mph (61, 000 kph).
January’s full moon was known as the Wolf Moon.
It wasn’t just a stroke of good fortune that led researchers to document the meteoroid impact.
Academics operating the Moon Impacts Detection and Analysis System (MIDAS), using eight telescopes in south of Spain to monitor the lunar surface, made the latest calculations.
The MIDAS survey was designed to identify these flashes on the dark side of the moon – or the region not illuminated by the sun at any given time.
The moon’s surface regularly suffers impacts from little space rocks like this; the surface acquires an average of 140 craters a year.
However, Earth has relatively thick atmosphere and most smaller rocks burn up when they attempt to career towards it.
The impact took place at around 11:41 p.m. ET and was captured in live-streams all around the world.
The study was published in the journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.
WHAT IS A LUNAR ECLIPSE?
An eclipse occurs any time a planet or moon passes between another planet, moon or the sun.
Depending on their orbits, they can be total or partial.
A lunar eclipse is a specific event which happens when Earth lines up directly between the sun and the moon.
When this happens, Earth blocks the light from the sun to the moon. Earth’s shadow then falls on the moon.
During a lunar eclipse, we can see Earth’s shadow on the moon.
They can last for several hours, but it is rare for a period of total eclipse to last longer than 100 minutes.
At least two lunar eclipses happen every year.
The moon will also be slightly closer to the Earth, causing it to appear brighter than usual, dubbed a Super Moon. These unique factors, when combined, result in a ‘Super Blood Wolf Moon’. This graphic shows how a lunar eclipse occurs
