Nortorf meteor

The Nortorf meteor was a probable and possible superbolide caused by a  that entered  over western Germany on 21 December 2016 at approximately 19:34 UTC+1 with a speed of 18.45 ± 0.13 kilometres per second (approx. 66,000 — 67,000 km/h or 41,000 — 41,500 mph). Entering over near, the meteor continued its descent over , Vechta, Bremen and Itzehoe, and disintegrated 9 kilometres to the north-northeast of Nortorf in Schleswig-Holstein-Jutland at a height of 9 kilometres. Fragments of the meteor were found as far further as Dänischenhagen, and it is possible that more fragments may have landed in the.

The light of the meteor was bright enough to light up the surface of the Earth through a thick layer of clouds and was observed in, Osnabrück, Oldenburg and Hamburg, as well as in the cities mentioned above. The disintegration was preceded by a blast over the municipality of Aukrug at an approximate height of 11 kilometres. Only approximately 7% of the energy of the blast was absorbed by the atmosphere due to the extremely low altitude of the blast, equivalent to approximately 50 kilotons of the 750 that the explosion was equivalent to, or approximately 1.5 times the explosive power of the. The shattered windows within a radius of approximately 7 kilometres around the village of Homfeld and was felt by witnesses as far away as Neumünster.

The object had been detected before atmospheric entry, but it had not been expected to disintegrate so near the Earth's surface. Its explosion caused significant damage in 19 municipalities, mostly in the form of shattered windows. Three houses, one in Innien and two in Bünzen, collapsed. One death was reported, a 34-years-old man who lived in the collapsed house in Innien. A further 3,455 injuries were reported due to the secondary effects of the shock wave. This makes it the second meteor in recorded history to cause a large number of injuries (the 2013 was the first) and the only meteor to have had a deadly effect.

Initial reports
Local residents from Neuss and Düsseldorf onwards reported seeing the clouds lighting up briefly. Reports of the clouds lighting up were received from as far as 20 kilometres off the trajectory of the meteor, and were mostly shared in social media. The flash continued from Neuss to Bremen and then further to Nortorf, where it was reported approximately 38 seconds later than in Düsseldorf, again on social media.

At approximately 19:36, a shock wave hit the municipality of Aukrug and its direct surroundings, which caused windows to shatter and several houses to collapse within a 7 km radius. The shock wave was felt by witnesses out on the streets in Neumünster, and heard as far away as Kiel and northern Hamburg. The explosion caused panic in most of central and northern Holstein, causing mobile telephone masts to overload due to the large number of calls to emergency services.

Immediate response
At 19:41 UTC+1, a state of emergency was declared by the Prime Minister of Schleswig-Holstein-Jutland. This was followed by a declaration by the Confederate Ministry of the Interior and Intraconfederate Relations, increasing the level of CDR to 7, or "(possible) attack in progress", in the Saxon states of German Lower Saxony, Bremen and Hamburg, and in the Slesian-Holsteinian-Jutlandic duchies of Holstein and Schleswig. The ministers were called for a crisis conference as the military was placed in a state of readiness to respond.

At 19:45, five F-16 jets departed from Wittmundhafen Airport, followed by another three F-16 jets from Eyjittsmiddi Airport at 19:48. At 19:57, reports reached the Confederate government that it was likely to be a meteor. This was confirmed at 20:05 by the, and CDR was lowered again.

At approximately 20:30, troops were sent into the affected region to support local emergency services. By 20:45, the situation was reported as "under control".