3 ms·

> Scientists have suggested that the massive rock apparently slowed down as it penetrated Earth’s atmosphere. It slowed so much that the Hoba reached a point of

> Scientists have suggested that the massive rock apparently slowed down as it penetrated Earth’s atmosphere. It slowed so much that the Hoba reached a point of terminal velocity as it was about to impact the surface i don't buy it. why couldnt it be part of a bigger impactor, so if it was just a shard that broke off after impact and flew mostly horizontally before settling? maybe it struck the top of a thick glacier that has since melted? maybe there were 200m of water in that location then? terminal velocity for a meteor is 200-400mph. 66 tons at that speed would at minimum leave it nowhere near the surface.

posterboy 8y ago
> why couldnt it be part of a bigger impactor, so if it was just a shard that broke off after impact and flew mostly horizontally before settling? I agree, there could be any number of explanations. I haven't seen many meteoroids but the rectangular shape appears peculiarly unnatural, more like a fragment of a shell.
innagadadavida 8y ago
No one seems to have proposed that it could have been magnetic and it interacted with Earth's magnetic field.
- vanattab 8y ago
  I don't think the earths magnetic field is anywhere near strong enough to seriously effect a meteorites velocity.
  - dysan819 8y ago
    You don't have to guess, you can do the math. While you're at it, watch this, it's fun (and related): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sENgdSF8ppA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sENgdSF8ppA
    - raverbashing 8y ago
      Yes, you can do the math. But "practical" intuition gives you a good sense of possible orders of magnitude, though, sometimes fails. A compass needle is easily moveable by hand. Even Lenz effect forces (when only driven by magnets) are weaker than the attraction forces of the same magnet (depending on the speed, of course) though going east->west the flux doesn't change much. So my conclusion is that, even though it might have had a small effect on it, absolutely not enough to make it change velocity significantly.

posterboy 8y ago

> why couldnt it be part of a bigger impactor, so if it was just a shard that broke off after impact and flew mostly horizontally before settling? I agree, there could be any number of explanations. I haven't seen many meteoroids but the rectangular shape appears peculiarly unnatural, more like a fragment of a shell.

innagadadavida 8y ago

No one seems to have proposed that it could have been magnetic and it interacted with Earth's magnetic field.

vanattab 8y ago
I don't think the earths magnetic field is anywhere near strong enough to seriously effect a meteorites velocity.
- dysan819 8y ago
  You don't have to guess, you can do the math. While you're at it, watch this, it's fun (and related): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sENgdSF8ppA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sENgdSF8ppA
  - raverbashing 8y ago
    Yes, you can do the math. But "practical" intuition gives you a good sense of possible orders of magnitude, though, sometimes fails. A compass needle is easily moveable by hand. Even Lenz effect forces (when only driven by magnets) are weaker than the attraction forces of the same magnet (depending on the speed, of course) though going east->west the flux doesn't change much. So my conclusion is that, even though it might have had a small effect on it, absolutely not enough to make it change velocity significantly.