Dropped popcorn kernel from space will it pop?

[LionTigerFire]

"If You Dropped a Corn Kernel From Space, Would it Pop During Re-Entry?"

This wacky question way emailed to the magazine Popular Science insufficiently answered in Jan 2009 p.80

is it possible to figure mathematically this out without testing it

 

[Astronuc]

First ask - under what conditions does a kernel of popcorn pop, i.e. what causes a kernel to pop?

Then ask, can a kernel of popcorn achieve these conditions during re-entry, or even in space, given the available sunlight and vacuum conditions?

 

[Mk]

"First ask" - I'm going to guess heat causes sufficient pressure inside the kernel.

During atmospheric re-entry it gets pretty hot. Would the kernel vaporize or just burn instead of pop?

 

[Raap]

Would the falling corn actually have enough speed to get hot during re-entry though?