Data visualisation: Where meteorites fall

A "blinding" flash, intense explosion and sonic booms experienced over much of the country last night were probably caused by a meteor, experts agree.

About 10pm, the flash, described by many as a burst of blue and white light, was seen from Whangarei to the upper South Island.

The data for this visualisation is from the Meteoritical Society, with information dating from to 452AD up to 2008. Drag the slider to reveal the increase in reporting from the 18th century onwards:

Data source: The Meteoritical Society