CNN has a news item about a mystery object that hit a house in New Jersey
Small picture, no data, but it looks like a possible iron meterorite.
Apparently some damage, but no injuries or deaths.
Owners are being cagey, just wait until their insurance company decides to take an issue.
Show-Me Meteorite Identification
and from down-under
PS: Already on Bad Astronomy - curse that Pacific time zone...
- Log in to post comments
More like this
In case you missed it before the holidays, ProPublica's excellent "Temporary Work, Lasting Harm" piece is well worth a read. (Univision also produced and aired a version of the story.) Michael Grabell, Olga Pierce, and Jeff Larson tell the story of 21-year-old Day Davis, a temporary worker killed…
Earth Impact Calculator
Ok, that was close, and I don't mean the zip by of li'l old 2012 DA14 this evening.
The Chelyabinsk meteor looks to have been on the high end of the range of quick and dirty estimates, with impact energy of maybe 300 kTon equivalent. This is a size impact we'd expect every…
Thanks to the latest issue (no. 240) of Fortean Times I've just learnt of the remarkable case whereby an unlucky Canada goose Branta canadensis was, allegedly, hit by a meteoroid (Anon. 2008). The story goes that Derbyshire postman Adrian Mannion was 'having a morning cuppa with his wife Fiona' (I…
Why you have to do something about guns
This message is primarily for those living in the United States. In the US, we have an outdated Constitutional amendment that has been interpreted by many, including the courts, in a way that hampers effective legislation to address what is clearly a major…
Well, I suspect meteorites probably fall squarely under the "acts of God" exemption to their insurance, but with a little effort they should be able to make up any damages by milking the publicity.
This is unusual for New Jersey. I think the standard thing there is to find a horse's head in your bead.
As I recall from previous incidents, if the insurance company pays for the damage, they may claim ownership of the meteorite.
Which can be an interesting calculus.
The latest issue of Wired has an interesting article on the topic - The Meteor Farmer