Don't Wanna Be Left Out

Apparently this Russian thing is all over everywhere, the MSM, the internet and no doubt people are "tweeting" about it.

It's feeling a bit left out, I am.

Now here at La Chant du Départ, we like to think we're on the leading edge of the latest stuff. Of course, we're actually nowhere near the leading edge, we're actually somewhat aft of the ailerons. Sort of flying in formation with the engine exhaust. Nevertheless, we like to think we're somewhat "with it". (What is this "we" business? It's just me.)

So without further ado, the scientific background you may be missing from those other sources.

Now according to the OAFSSRFTOTN*  -

A meteorite is a meteoroid (a solid piece of debris from such sources as asteroids or comets) originating in outer space that survives impact with the Earth's surface. A meteorite's size can range from small to extremely large. Most meteorites derive from small astronomical objects called meteoroids, but they are also sometimes produced by impacts of asteroids. When a meteoroid enters the atmosphere, frictional, pressure, and chemical interactions with the atmospheric gasses cause the body to heat up and emit light, thus forming a fireball, also known as a meteor or shooting/falling star. The term bolide refers to either an extraterrestrial body that collides with the Earth, or to an exceptionally bright, fireball-like meteor regardless of whether it ultimately impacts the surface.

And -

A meteor or "shooting star" is the visible streak of light from a meteoroid or micrometeoroid, heated and glowing from entering the Earth's atmosphere, as it sheds glowing material in its wake. Meteors typically occur in the mesosphere at altitudes between 76 km to 100 km (46–62 miles). Millions of meteors enter the Earth's atmosphere daily. Most meteoroids that cause meteors are about the size of a pebble. Meteors may occur in showers, which arise when the Earth passes through a stream of debris left by a comet, or as "random" or "sporadic" meteors, not associated with a specific stream of space debris. A number of specific meteors have been observed, largely by members of the public and largely by accident, but with enough detail that orbits of the meteoroids producing the meteors have been calculated. All of the orbits passed through the asteroid belt. The atmospheric velocities of meteors result from the movement of Earth around the Sun at about 30 km/s (18 miles/second), the orbital speeds of meteoroids, and the gravity well of Earth.

Uh, yes. Yes, it is.

Blizzards...

Objects of non-terrestrial origin slamming into the planet...

I'm not so sure that we should be looking forward to NEXT weekend.

*OAFSSRFTOTN = Old Air Force Sarge Standard Reference for Things of This Nature (i.e. Wikipedia)

This definition is also available on The Acronym Page.

Which is a hint that I may stop spelling these things out  here in the future. Or not. We shall see.