COULD THE TUNGUSKA DEBRIS SURVIVE THE TERMINAL FLARE

The purpose of this paper is to show that lack of residual meteorites is typical for a fall of a stony or carbonaceous bolide tens of meters in size. A Tunguska-sized body penetrates deep into the atmosphere an d is broken into a great deal of fragments the maximum size of which i s smaller than 10 cm. Numerical cal simulations of analogous problems show that the fragments are separated from each other at a stage of dr amatic deceleration of the bolide. Computations made here give that 3- 10cm stony fragments fully ablate either inside or outside the firebal l due to high radiation flux. Only if the fragments accidentally gain significant lateral velocities at altitudes above 15 km, could their p onderable remnants reach the ground at 5-10km from the explosion epice nter. Vaporized material of the impactor does not touch the ground and moves upward along the wake. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All right s reserved.