A stunning fireball that crackled across the sky near the Russian-Finnish border last year shared its orbit with a huge asteroid found in October . This is according to a new study which claims the Kola fireball had a 'disturbingly similar ' path to asteroid 2014 UR116 , which is due to pass by the moon in 2017 . Spotted on April 19 last year , researchers used camera footage to help recreate its trajectory and hunt down any remaining fragments . A stunning fireball that crackled across the sky near the Russian-Finnish border last year shared its orbit with a huge asteroid found in October . Pictured is he fireball at the time of entry at the Kola Peninsula . Joseph Maria Trigo-Rodríguez , a researcher at the Institute of Space Sciences in Barcelona , Spain , headed the team of scientists who studied the meteorite 's orbit . They determined the fireball 's path by studying its flight and the meteorite 's final impact site , before creating a computer model based on those figures . This led researchers to the Annama meteorite , which is an ordinary H5 chondrite - a group of space rocks with high strength that make up 31 per cent of meteorite falls . The computer model compared the orbit of Annama , a 1,100lb ( 500kg ) rock , with the evolution of a dozen orbits of near-Earth asteroids . Scientists determined the fireball 's path by studying its flight and the meteorite 's final impact site , before creating a computer model based on those figures . This led researchers to the Annama meteorite ( pictured ) The computer model compared the orbit of Annama ( pictured ) , a 1,100lb ( 500kg ) rock , with the evolution of a dozen orbits of near-Earth asteroids . 2014 UR116 , a mountain-sized asteroid which passes Earth every three years , was discovered by Russian scientists in December . Vladimir Lipunov , a professor at Moscow State University , said the space rock , poses no immediate threat - although warned it could 'theoretically ' hit Earth.. However , he said it highlights the damage an asteroid could cause - in this case an explosion 1,000 times greater than the surprise 2013 impact of a bus-sized meteor in Russia . At 400-metres ( 1,300 feet ) in size , the space rock is about the same size as the Empire State Building is tall . Proffesor Lipunov said it is difficult to calculate the orbit of big rocks like '2014 UR116 ' because their trajectories are constantly being changed by the gravitational pull of other planets . It showed a similarity with the evolution of 2014 UR116 , which given its size and minimum distance to the planet , has been classed a 'potentially dangerous asteroid ' . Vladimir Lipunov , a professor at Moscow State University , said the space rock , poses no immediate threat - although warned it could 'theoretically ' hit Earth . Currently , 1,573 asteroids of this type are known so researchers are investigating to what extent they can pose a danger . While the study does not claim that asteroid 2014 UR116 sent the Annama meteorite directly at Earth , it suggests the two bodies are related . Scientists believe that streams of asteroid fragments can travel on nearly identical orbits . Tidal forces may disperse the debris over time and asteroids can also break up due to the pull of large planets . 'The tidal effect on an asteroid , which rapidly rotates under the gravitational field of a planet , can fragment these objects or release large rocks from its surface , ' said Trigo . ' [ This ] could then become such dangerous projectiles at a local scale as the one fell in Cheliábinsk ( Russia ) on February 15th 2013 ' . Manuel Moreno-Ibáñez , CSIC researcher that participated in the study , explains : 'The data we have obtained provided new clues about the origin of the rocks with a few meters in diameter that produce meteorite falls . 'So far , we only know the orbits of other 22 meteorites , and not always with the sought accuracy . ' The researchers hope their latest study will help shed light on how asteroid create projectiles , and which ones pose a threat to Earth . Knowing where the meteorite originates could also help them us better understand the formation and evolution of the solar system . The Kola Peninsula , where the fireball hit , is a peninsula in the far northwest of Russia . Constituting the bulk of the territory of Murmansk Oblast , it lies almost completely to the north of the Arctic Circle .
Scientists created a computer model to analyse Kola fireball 's trajectory . It had similar orbit to asteroid 2014 Russian due to pass by moon in 2017 . This suggests the two bodies may be related as streams of asteroid fragments can travel on nearly identical orbits .