BRIN reveals chronology and cause of meteor boom that crossed Java

Astronomy Professor at the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), Thomas Djamaluddin, has revealed that the bright celestial object seen crossing Java on Saturday night (11/7) was a large meteor entering Earth’s atmosphere. Thomas explained that the meteor was first detected passing over the Java Sea before being visible from the Bekasi area at around 9:22:35 PM Western Indonesian Time. At that point, the meteor was still at a high altitude, appearing as a relatively small, glowing white object. “The meteor originates from space rocks orbiting the sun. When its path intersects with Earth’s orbit, the rock enters the atmosphere at a very high speed. Friction with the atmosphere causes its surface to heat up until it glows, making it visible as a meteor,” he said. During this phase, the rocky material began to undergo ablation, or erosion, due to the extremely high temperatures, producing a bright light observable from the ground. Based on trajectory analysis, Thomas clarified that the meteor moved southeast across parts of Java. As it entered the denser lower atmosphere, the object grew brighter and began displaying different colour variations depending on the observation location. In the eastern part of West Java, several residents of Cirebon and Kuningan reported hearing a booming sound moments after the meteor passed. Thomas explained that the sound was not from a surface explosion but a sonic boom formed as the meteor travelled at very high speed in the lower atmosphere. “The booming sound occurs because the meteor moves much faster than the speed of sound. The shockwave is only heard moments after the meteor passes because the sound takes time to reach the surface,” he stated. In Majalengka, the meteor was reported to appear blue. Subsequently, the same object was seen in the Nagreg area at around 9:23:37 PM and in Tasikmalaya as a bright light that occasionally illuminated the clouds. Thomas noted that such colour variations are common in meteors, influenced by their mineral composition and the atmospheric conditions they traverse. When passing over the Yogyakarta region at around 9:23:57 PM, several residents witnessed the meteor emitting a very bright green light. According to Thomas, the green colour originates from magnesium contained in the space rock, which emits a characteristic glow when burned at extremely high temperatures due to atmospheric friction. From the collected observations, BRIN estimates the meteor continued moving southeast until it eventually lost its velocity and likely ended its trajectory over the Indian Ocean, south of East Java or Bali. “This phenomenon is an interesting natural event and a reminder that Earth constantly interacts with the space environment. As long as meteors burn up completely in the atmosphere or fall in uninhabited areas, the public need not worry. The most important thing is to understand the phenomenon scientifically so as not to be easily influenced by misinformation,” concluded Thomas Djamaluddin.