Russian chelyabinsk meteor's origin remains a mystery even after 2 yrs

The origin of Russian chelyabinsk meteor remains elusive even after two years of the incident that injured hundreds of people.

Astronomers had originally predicted that a 2-km near-Earth asteroid (NEA) designated (86039) 1999 NC43 could be the source body from which the Chelyabinsk meteoroid was ejected prior to its encounter with the Earth.

However, reanalysis of the orbital parameters and spectral data by an international team of researchers led by Reddy has shown that the link between Chelyabinsk and 1999 NC43 was unlikely.

The study also showed that linking specific meteorites to an asteroid is extremely difficult due to the chaotic nature of the orbits of these bodies.

The paper is published in the journal Icarus.