Weston meteorite | |
---|---|
Type | Ordinary Chondrite[1] |
Class | H4 |
Weathering grade | W0 |
Country | United States |
Region | Fairfield County, Connecticut |
Coordinates | 41°13′N 73°23′W / 41.217°N 73.383°W |
Observed fall | Yes |
Fall date | 14 December 1807 |
Related media on Wikimedia Commons |
The Weston meteorite is an H4 ordinary chondrite meteorite which fell to earth above the town of Weston, Connecticut on the morning of December 14, 1807.[2]
Coordinates that best express the Weston fall are 41°16'N, 73°16'W (see new publication by Robson and Pagliaro 2009). The Weston meteor was observed for approximately ten seconds at 06:00 Eastern Standard Time (11:00 UTC) on 1807 December 14 over New York state and New England. The meteor's atmospheric trajectory was on a course of 155 degrees azimuth (NW to SE) at a slope to the horizon of 30 degrees. The meteor became visible at an altitude of approximately 84 km and its terminal point was at an altitude of approximately 16 km. A significant fragmentation of the meteoroid occurred in the vicinity of New Milford, Connecticut at an altitude of 30 km. Upper air winds distributed the seven fragments recovered into a classical elliptical pattern (centered on the above given coordinates); the major axis being 12 km and orientated north to south. The total mass is ~20 kg. The main mass landed on a rock outcropping in a pasture in Easton, Fairfield County, Connecticut, within 100 m of 41°12'50" N and 73°15'43"W.