Meteorite fragments recovered in Germany after fireball seen over northwestern Europe.

More than 3000 witnesses in Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands have reported observing a bright fireball meteor at about 6.55 pm local time (about 5.55 pm GMT) on Sunday 8 March 2026, with some witnesses also reporting a sonic boom. The meteor is described as having moved from southwest to northeast for about six seconds before exploding in a fireball over the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. A fireball is defined as a meteor (shooting star) brighter than the planet Venus. 

A very bright fireball moving from the southwest to the northeast was observed by many people in Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands. Bernd Klemt/AllSky7 fireball network/European Space Agency.

Objects of this size probably enter the Earth's atmosphere several times a year, though unless they do so over populated areas they are unlikely to be noticed. They are officially described as fireballs if they produce a light brighter than the planet Venus. The brightness of a meteor is caused by friction with the Earth's atmosphere, which is typically far greater than that caused by simple falling, due to the initial trajectory of the object. Such objects typically eventually explode in an airburst called by the friction, causing them to vanish as a luminous object. However, this is not the end of the story as such explosions result in the production of a number of smaller objects, which fall to the ground under the influence of gravity (which does not cause the luminescence associated with friction-induced heating).

These 'dark objects' do not continue along the path of the original bolide, but neither do they fall directly to the ground, but rather follow a course determined by the atmospheric currents (winds) through which the objects pass. Scientists are able to calculate potential trajectories for hypothetical dark objects derived from meteors using data from weather monitoring services.

Shortly after the meteor was sighted, two residents of a flat in the German city of Koblenz reported an impact which had caused a football-sized hole in their roof, as well as damage to a tiled floor in the room underneath. A search of the flat yielded eleven fragments of rock with masses of between 6 and 161 g. A number of smaller fragments were subsequently found in a neighbouring courtyard by professional meteorite-hunters and sold. Police in Koblenz have subsequently issued a warning to other meteorite-hunters in the area to respect private property, and not to collect suspected fragments from areas which they have not been given permission to enter.

The largest of the meteorite fragments recovered from a home in Koblenz, Germany, weighing 161 g. SWR.

The meteorite fragments have a pale interior and a near-black crust, making it likely that they are a type of stoney meteorite called a HED (howardite–eucrite–diogenite) achondrite breccia. These meteorites resemble terrestrial igneous rocks, and are therefore presumed to have come from a body large enough for magma differentiation and igneous processing to have occurred. HED meteorites comprise about 5% of all meteorites recovered on Earth, and about 60% of achondritic meteorites (meteorites which do not contain chondrules, spherules of glassy material thought to have formed from molten droplets in space before being incorporated into larger bodies).

Fragments of probable HED meteorite recovered from a flat in Koblenz, Germany. SWR.

While HED meteorites vary somewhat in composition, all are thought to derive from the surface of the Asteroid 4 Vesta. Studies of these meteorites have produced crystallisation ages of between 4.43 and 4.55 billion years, and all show signs of having formed in an environment where igneous differentiation has occurred. These meteorites are thought to have been dislodged from the surface of their parent body by ancient impacts.

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Vesta at opposition.

Asteroid 4 Vesta will reach opposition (the point at which it is directly opposite the Sun when observed from the Earth) at 11.58 am GMT on Friday 2 May 2025, when it will also be at the closest point on its orbit to the Earth, 1.18 AU (i.e. 1.18 times as far from the Earth as the Sun, or about 176 825 000 km), and be completely illuminated by the Sun. While it is not obvious to the naked eye observer, asteroids have phases just like those of the Moon; being further from the Sun than the Earth, 4 Vesta is 'full' when directly opposite the Sun. As 4 Vesta is only about 525 km in diameter, it will not be visible to the naked eye, but with a maximum Apparent Magnitude (luminosity) of 5.7 at opposition, it should be visible in the Constellation of |Libra to viewers equipped with a good pair of binoculars or small telescope.

The orbit and position of 4 Vesta and the planets of the Inner Solar System 1t 12.00 noon GMT on Friday 2 May 2025.  JPL Small Body Database. 

4 Vesta has a 1326 day (3.63 year) orbital period and an eccentric orbit tilted at an angle of 7.14° to the plane of the Solar System, which takes it from 2.15 AU from the Sun (i.e. 215% of the average distance at which the Earth orbits the Sun) to 2.57 AU from the Sun (i.e. 257% of the average distance at which the Earth orbits the Sun). As an asteroid that never comes within 1.666 AU of the Sun and has an average orbital distance less than 3.2 AU from the Sun, 4 Vesta is classed as a Main Belt Asteroid. 

Asteroid 4 Vesta imaged by the Dawn space probe on 24 July 2011, from a distance of 5200 km. Björn Jónsson/NASA/JPL/MPS/DLR/IDA/Wikimedia Commons.

Asteroid 4 Vesta was discovered on 29 March 1807 by the German astronomer Heinrich Wilhelm Matthias Olbers, making it the fourth asteroid discovered, and the second by Olbers (who had discovered 2 Pallas on 28 March 1802). The asteroid was named Vesta in honour of the Roman goddess of the hearth. 4 Vesta is currently considered to be the second largest body in the Main Asteroid Belt, although uncertainty about the size of Asteroid 2 Pallas, means this is not completely certain.

Artist's concept of the Dawn space probe approaching 4 Vesta. NASA/JPL/CalTech.

The Dawn space probe orbited 4 Vesta from 16 July 2011 until 5 September 2012 (when it left to move on to Asteroid 1 Ceres). During this time it built up a detailed map of the surface of 4 Vesta, which revealed a northern surface covered with craters; apparently much older than the southern surface, suggesting that the asteroid was once a planetesimal on its way to growing into a planet.

High-resolution geological map of Vesta derived from Dawn spacecraft data. Brown colours represent the oldest, most heavily cratered surface. Purple colours in the north and light blue represent terrains modified by the Veneneia and Rheasilvia impacts, respectively. Light purples and dark blue colours below the equator represent the interior of the Rheasilvia and Veneneia basins. Greens and yellows represent relatively young landslides or other downhill movement and crater impact materials, respectively. NASA/JPL/CalTech/JSU.

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Asteroid 4 Vesta comes to opposition.

Asteroid 4 Vesta will reach opposition (the point at which it is directly opposite the Sun when observed from the Earth) at 9.34 pm GMT on Thursday 22 December 2023, when it will also be at the closest point on its orbit to the Earth, 1.58 AU (i.e. 1.58 times as far from the Earth as the Sun, or about 236 813 000 km), and be completely illuminated by the Sun. While it is not obvious to the naked eye observer, asteroids have phases just like those of the Moon; being further from the Sun than the Earth, 4 Vesta is 'full' when directly opposite the Sun. As 4 Vesta is only about 525 km in diameter, it will not be visible to the naked eye, but with a maximum Apparent Magnitude (luminosity) of 6.4 at opposition, it should be visible in the Constellation of |Orion to viewers equipped with a good pair of binoculars or small telescope.

Asteroid 4 Vesta imaged by the Dawn space probe on 24 July 2011, from a distance of 5200 km. Björn Jónsson/NASA/JPL/MPS/DLR/IDA/Wikimedia Commons.

Asteroid 4 Vesta was discovered on 29 March 1807 by the German astronomer Heinrich Wilhelm Matthias Olbers, making it the fourth asteroid discovered, and the second by Olbers (who had discovered 2 Pallas on 28 March 1802). The asteroid was named Vesta in honour of the Roman goddess of the hearth. 4 Vesta is currently considered to be the second largest body in the Main Asteroid Belt, although uncertainty about the size of Asteroid 2 Pallas, means this is not completely certain.

The orbit and position of 4 Vesta and the planets of the Inner Solar System on 21 December 2023.  JPL Small Body Database. 

4 Vesta has a 1326 day (3.63 year) orbital period and an eccentric orbit tilted at an angle of 7.14° to the plane of the Solar System, which takes it from 2.15 AU from the Sun (i.e. 215% of the average distance at which the Earth orbits the Sun) to 2.57 AU from the Sun (i.e. 257% of the average distance at which the Earth orbits the Sun). As an asteroid that never comes within 1.666 AU of the Sun and has an average orbital distance less than 3.2 AU from the Sun, 4 Vesta is classed as a Main Belt Asteroid. 

Artist's concept of the Dawn space probe approaching 4 Vesta. NASA/JPL/CalTech.

The Dawn space probe orbited 4 Vesta from 16 July 2011 until 5 September 2012 (when it left to move on to Asteroid 1 Ceres). During this time it built up a detailed map of the surface of 4 Vesta, which revealed a northern surface covered with craters; apparently much older than the southern surface, suggesting that the asteroid was once a planetesimal on its way to growing into a planet.

High-resolution geological map of Vesta derived from Dawn spacecraft data. Brown colours represent the oldest, most heavily cratered surface. Purple colours in the north and light blue represent terrains modified by the Veneneia and Rheasilvia impacts, respectively. Light purples and dark blue colours below the equator represent the interior of the Rheasilvia and Veneneia basins. Greens and yellows represent relatively young landslides or other downhill movement and crater impact materials, respectively. NASA/JPL/CalTech/JSU.

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Asteroid 4 Vesta comes to opposition.

Asteroid 4 Vesta will reach opposition (the point at which it is directly opposite the Sun when observed from the Earth) at 11,58 am GMT on Monday 22 August 2022, when it will also be at the closest point on its orbit to the Earth, 1.29 AU (i.e. 1.29 times as far from the Earth as the Sun, or about 102 223 000 km), and be completely illuminated by the Sun. While it is not obvious to the naked eye observer, asteroids have phases just like those of the Moon; being further from the Sun than the Earth, 4 Vesta is 'full' when directly opposite the Sun. As 4 Vesta is only about 525 km in diameter, it will not be visible to the naked eye, but with a maximum Apparent Magnitude (luminosity) of 6.1 at opposition, it should be visible in the Constellation of Aquarius to viewers equipped with a good pair of binoculars or small telescope.

Asteroid 4 Vesta imaged by the Dawn space probe on 24 July 2011, from a distance of 5200 km. Björn Jónsson/NASA/JPL/MPS/DLR/IDA/Wikimedia Commons.

Asteroid 4 Vesta was discovered on 29 March 1807 by the German astronomer Heinrich Wilhelm Matthias Olbers, making it the fourth asteroid discovered, and the second by Olbers (who had discovered 2 Pallas on 28 March 1802). The asteroid was named Vesta in honour of the Roman goddess of the hearth. 4 Vesta is currently considered to be the second largest body in the Main Asteroid Belt, although uncertainty about the size of Asteroid 2 Pallas, means this is not completely certain.

The calculated orbit and position of 4 Vesta on 22 August 2022.  JPL Small Body Database. 

4 Vesta has a 1326 day (3.63 year) orbital period and an eccentric orbit tilted at an angle of 7.14° to the plane of the Solar System, which takes it from 2.15 AU from the Sun (i.e. 215% of the average distance at which the Earth orbits the Sun) to 2.57 AU from the Sun (i.e. 257% of the average distance at which the Earth orbits the Sun). As an asteroid that never comes within 1.666 AU of the Sun and has an average orbital distance less than 3.2 AU from the Sun, 4 Vesta is classed as a Main Belt Asteroid. 

Artist's concept of the Dawn space probe approaching 4 Vesta. NASA/JPL/CalTech.

The Dawn space probe orbited 4 Vesta from 16 July 2011 until 5 September 2012 (when it left to move on to Asteroid 1 Ceres). During this time it built up a detailed map of the surface of 4 Vesta, which revealed a northern surface covered with craters; apparently much older than the southern surface, suggesting that the asteroid was once a planetesimal on its way to growing into a planet.

High-resolution geological map of Vesta derived from Dawn spacecraft data. Brown colours represent the oldest, most heavily cratered surface. Purple colours in the north and light blue represent terrains modified by the Veneneia and Rheasilvia impacts, respectively. Light purples and dark blue colours below the equator represent the interior of the Rheasilvia and Veneneia basins. Greens and yellows represent relatively young landslides or other downhill movement and crater impact materials, respectively. NASA/JPL/CalTech/JSU.

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