How to Use the Fireball / Atmospheric Entry 3D Explorer - Step by Step

Last reviewed: 2026-08-02

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Open the Fireball / Atmospheric Entry 3D Explorer, slide diameter, entry speed, and entry angle, and press Send it in to see where the model places the ablation onset and which outcome band the result falls into.

Slide diameter

Slide diameter from 1 m to 1,000 m on a log scale. The facts panel converts your setting to an estimated mass using a typical stony density, then updates the outcome band the moment the diameter crosses a threshold.

Slide entry speed

Slide entry speed from 11.2 to 72 km/s, the full published range for meteoroids entering Earth's atmosphere. Faster settings push the modeled ablation-onset altitude higher within the real 75-100 km band.

Slide entry angle

Slide entry angle from 10 to 90 degrees, from a shallow grazing path to a near-vertical drop. The angle changes how the descent looks on screen; it does not change the ablation-altitude estimate, which is driven by speed alone.

Press Send it in

Press Send it in to play the descent. A fading trail follows the meteor down to the modeled outcome altitude, then a flash marks the result - its size and fade depend on which outcome band your settings landed in.

Try the Chelyabinsk preset

Press Preset: Chelyabinsk 2013 to load the real published diameter, speed, and angle for the 15 February 2013 event in one click, then compare that result against whatever you set the sliders to next.

Read the facts panel

Read the facts panel beside the scene for the live mass estimate, the outcome-band label, the modeled ablation-altitude figure, and a reference table of the published entry-speed range, ablation-altitude band, fireball definition, and the Chelyabinsk reference figures.

Next: see when to use this explorer or how it compares to Chelyabinsk Meteor 3D Explorer.

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Last updated: Aug 1, 2026