Meteorite falls between Ballarat and Bendigo

A meteorite that lit up the night sky across eastern Victoria on Sunday has landed between Ballarat and Bendigo, with experts confirming the location but withholding exact coordinates.

The fall site of a meteorite spotted streaking across Victorian skies on Sunday night has been identified, with astronomers confirming it crash landed “between Ballarat and Bendigo.”

Staff at the Ballarat Observatory posted that the likely impact site is located northeast of Maryborough.

A meteorite that lit up the night sky across eastern Victoria on Sunday has landed between Ballarat and Bendigo. Picture: X

“Unfortunately we are not releasing the exact fall site yet but can confirm it is between Ballarat and Bendigo,” said Rachel Kirby a planetary geologist at Monash University and lead meteorite geochemist for the Desert Fireball Network.

Researchers from Monash University have assembled a team and recovery efforts are now under way to locate fragments of the meteor.

Once the meteorite is recovered, researchers can analyse and test it to determine its composition, age, and origin in space.

“Once we have completed these analyses, we hope to put the meteorite on display at the Melbourne Museum, so that everyone can view and learn about it and the fireball,” continued Kirby.

The Pendergast Hut webcam at Mount Buller captured the meteorite falling. Picture: Mount Buller

Kirby said this was a “scientifically special meteorite” as researchers were able to calculate its orbit prior to hitting earth.

“Although there are over 77 thousand meteorites recognised in the Meteoritical Bulletin, there are less than 70 for which we know their pre-Earth orbit,” said Kirby.

CCTV shows the meteorite passing over Cobden in Southwestern Victoria. Picture: Dwayne Rollings

Residents across Victoria took to social media on Sunday to report sightings of the fireball lighting up the sky from the east of the state.

One Reddit user reported seeing a “shimmering orange, golden, silver with a sparkly tail, fat as anything” and another based in St Kilda described seeing an “enormous camera flash” from their living room.

Although unconfirmed, the meteor is likely unrelated to the Perseid meteor shower, which runs from July 17 to August 2 and reached its peak on Tuesday evening.

Often called the “best meteor shower of the year,” the Perseids occur annually as Earth passes through debris left by comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle.