The largest object to enter Earth's atmosphere since the 1908 Tunguska event, injuring nearly 1,500 people across Russia's Chelyabinsk Oblast.
Key Facts
- Asteroid diameter
- ~18 meters (60 ft)
- Asteroid mass
- 9,100 tonnes tonnes
- Entry speed
- 19.2 km/s (68,980 km/h)
- Blast yield
- 400–500 kilotonnes of TNT
- People injured
- 1,491 people
- Buildings damaged
- ~7,200 in six cities
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
An approximately 18-meter, 9,100-tonne near-Earth asteroid approached Earth undetected, its trajectory difficult to observe in advance because its radiant was close to the Sun. Traveling at roughly 19.2 km/s, it entered the atmosphere at a shallow 18-degree angle over Russia's southern Ural region on 15 February 2013.
The asteroid exploded in a superbolide air burst at about 30 km altitude over Chelyabinsk Oblast, releasing energy equivalent to 400–500 kilotonnes of TNT—roughly 30 times the Hiroshima bomb. The resulting flash briefly outshone the Sun and was visible up to 100 km away, followed minutes later by a powerful shock wave.
The shock wave damaged around 7,200 buildings across six cities and injured 1,491 people, mostly from broken glass. No deaths were recorded. The event highlighted global vulnerabilities to undetected near-Earth objects and renewed scientific and governmental interest in planetary defense strategies.