2016 February Tamil Nadu meteorite incident

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On February 8, 2016, a number of media outlets reported that a bus driver had been killed and three others injured by a possible meteorite fall in Tamil Nadu, India. A falling object reportedly left a crater 4 feet (1.2 m) deep and smashed windows on the campus of Bharathidasan Engineering College, in addition to inflicting the injuries.[1][2] Others in the area reported hearing an unusual sound and seeing a smoke stripe, and police reported finding rock fragments embedded in the driver's body.[3]

A small (11 grams (0.39 oz)[4]) blue object was recovered from the scene that attracted a magnet, and some experts suggested it could be a fragment of a space vehicle.[3] Authorities suspected an explosion of abandoned gelatine sticks, but no traces of explosives were found. Dipankar Banerjee of the Indian Institute of Astrophysics expressed skepticism that the object was a meteorite,[5] as did Lindley Johnson, NASA's planetary defense officer.[6] Other experts concluded that a meteorite so small could not have created a crater as large as the one reported.[4]

Officials of the National College, Tiruchirapalli, insisted that the object was a carbonaceous chondrite meteorite and designated it as BEC 1.[2]

If the object was a meteorite, the incident would be the first confirmed death of a human due to a meteorite in recorded history.[1][4]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Auger, Monika (8 February 2016). "Authorities: Meteorite Killed Man in India". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "It was meteorite that killed a person in Vellore: Study". ZeeNews. 9 February 2016. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Scientists study India's deadly 'meteorite' (Update)". phys.org. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 "Astrophysicists analyse 'meteorite' that killed bus driver, shattered windows in India". ABC News. 9 February 2016. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
  5. ↑ Chandrashekar, Nandini (7 February 2016). "Vellore Rock Unlikely to Be A Meteorite, Says Astro Prof". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
  6. ↑ Hauser, Christine (9 February 2016). "That Wasn't a Meteorite That Killed a Man in India, NASA Says". New York Times. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
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