A fireball that lit up the Tokyo sky earlier this month was identified as a meteor after fragments were found in a neighboring prefecture, a national science museum in Japan said Monday.
The meteorite, which landed at a condo in Narashino, Chiba Prefecture, is believed to originally have been a diameter of a few centimeters, but it probably broke into two pieces, according to the National Museum of Nature and Science.
The photo provided shows fragments of a meteorite that landed at a condo in Narashino, Chiba Prefecture. (Photo courtesy of the National Museum of Nature and Science) (Kyodo)
【速 報 ✨ # 火球 が 隕石 で あ る こ と を 確認‼ ️】
７ 月 ２ 日 未 明 に 各地 で 観 測 さ れ た 火球 （の 一部） は # 国立 科学 博物館 が 分析 し 、 隕石 で あ る こ と を 確認 💡
千葉 野 が が に
– か は く 【国立 科学 博物館 公式】 (@museum_kahaku) July 13, 2020
The pieces weigh 63 grams and 70 grams, respectively, he said. A woman resident of the condo, who was awakened by a loud noise in the early hours of July 2, discovered a fragment of rock in the common corridor outside her room later that morning.
Upon learning of the news of the fireball, the woman kept the fragment thinking it might be a meteorite.
An impact mark on the hallway railing led to the discovery of a second piece of rock in the courtyard two days later. The metal in the second piece had rusted from exposure to rain, turning it brown.
The supplied photo taken from footage captured by Daichi Fujii of the Hiratsuka City Museum shows a fireball crossing the sky as seen from Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, on July 2, 2020. (Kyodo)
The museum, which was asked to analyze the pieces, detected isotopes of aluminum, sodium and manganese produced by the cosmic ray bombardment.
Since some isotopes have a half-life of just a few days, he was able to confirm that the rocks came from a recently fallen meteorite.
The last meteorite to hit Japan landed on private property in Komaki, Aichi Prefecture, about two years ago.
The supplied photo shows a meteorite, which landed at a condo in Narashino, Chiba Prefecture. (Photo courtesy of the National Museum of Nature and Science) (Kyodo)
The museum plans to present the latest meteorite, which it has named “Narashino”, for registration in the Meteorological Society. If accepted, it will be the 53rd meteorite registered in Japan.
The shooting star was observed on July 2 moving from southwest to northeast in the sky over the Japanese capital while emitting a glow of light comparable to the brightness of a full moon.
Social media came to life after the 2:30 am incident, with many people saying they heard a loud thud, and some mistakenly attributed the sound to their upstairs neighbors.
Related coverage:
The shooting star seems to have exploded over Tokyo
Japan and the United States sign document on cooperation for lunar exploration
Astronauts offer advice on life in confined spaces
.
