Fire in the SkyS


Meteor

Comet Caesar - Dark Comet in 2012?

Robert Bast
Survive 2012.com
Mon, 02 Nov 2009 18:50 UTC
Image
© UnknownComet Caesar
When considering what might cause us grief in 2012, few if any researchers consider the start of the Mayan Long Count calendar to have any importance. This is surprising, because the reason for the calendar beginning on August 11 3114BC might contain clues about 2012 itself. After all, the Mayan culture did not exist 5,000 years ago, so either they randomly chose an ancient date on a whim, or an earlier civilization was behind the calendar, and they knew something important occurred on that date.

What could happen in 3114BC, and also in 2012AD? No civilization has lasted that long, so they are unlikely to be man-made events. Any natural events that occur so infrequently on Earth are virtually impossible to predict (volcanic eruptions for example). So that leaves us with astronomical events. The astrology of the pair of dates has been well studied, so we can rule out alignments of the stars and planets. That leaves the Sun, which we barely understand today, and comets. Is there a comet with a periodicity of 5000 years, due to return in 2012? Without any evidence from 3114BC it is impossible to say. Given that we are now near the end of the Mayan 5th age, could their calendar be designed to cover five orbits of a comet? And end catastrophically in 2012?

Most people have not heard of Comet Caesar (it doesn't even have a Wikipedia entry), and hopefully this will remain so. However, if we are to suffer a terrible tragedy in 2012, it is currently my leading candidate, and the purpose of this article is to explain why.
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Red Flag

'Meteorite' that landed in Latvia is a hoax, experts say

Tony Halpin
Times Online
Mon, 26 Oct 2009 18:09 UTC
It was the student prank that apparently fell to earth after experts dismissed a meteorite crash in Latvia as an elaborate hoax today.

Dramatic video of a fireball at the bottom of an impact crater on farmland outside the town of Mazsalaca was shown all over the world, taken by a group of film students who said that they had heard the meteor strike.

But experts who examined the scene were less star-struck. Dr Ilgonis Vilks, chairman of the scientific council at the University of Latvia's Institute of Astronomy, said: "It's a fake. It's very disappointing, I was full of hope coming here, but I am certain it is not a meteorite."

Setting aside the astronomical odds of a group of film students happening to be at the ready when a meteorite hits the Earth, Dr Vilks said that several other tell-tale signs had given the game away.
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Meteor

Meteorite falls in northern Latvia, no one injured


RIA Novosti
Mon, 26 Oct 2009 10:59 UTC
Image
© Unknown
No one was injured after a meteorite fell near a small town in northern Latvia on Sunday, local Latvian media reported.

According to media reports, the meteorite fell near a residential house on the outskirts of Mazsalaca town in the Valmiera district of Latvia, leaving a crater of some 20 meters (66 feet) in diameter and 10 meters (33 feet) deep.

A spokesperson for the Latvian State Fire and Rescue Service said that rescuers and soldiers immediately cordoned off the territory, however, it is still not clear whether it was an asteroid or a space satellite.

"The territory has been immediately cordoned off as we still do not know what fell down from the sky. According to preliminary information, it was a meteorite. However, it is possible that it was a [space] satellite or its fragment. A radioactive contamination is also possible," she said.

A witness, who saw the object falling from the sky and leaving a burning trace behind, said it was making a noise similar to the one of an aircraft flying at a low altitude.

Comment: Update: This incident appears to have been staged

'Meteorite' that landed in Latvia is a hoax, experts say

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Meteor

Hoax? Video footage of blazing 'meteorite' in Latvia


Daily Mail
Mon, 26 Oct 2009 10:14 UTC

A fiery object struck farmland creating a large crater near a small town in northern Latvia.

No-one was injured in the incident and geologists are now studying the object, which may be a meteorite.

Locals claimed the object fell near a farmhouse on the outskirts of Mazsalaca town in the district of Valmiera last night.

It created a crater which measured 50 feet across and 16 feet deep.

A witness who claimed to have seen the incident described the 'meteorite' as making a noise similar to the one of an aircraft flying at a low altitude.

ldis Nulle, a scientist at the Latvian Environment, Geology and Meteorology Center, said there was smoke coming out of the crater when he arrived at the crash site late Sunday in the Mazsalaca region near the Estonian border.

'My first impression is that, yes, it was a meteorite,' he said. 'All the evidence suggests this when compared to pictures of real meteorite craters.'
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Meteor

Did a meteor make this crater in Latvia?


Associated Press
Mon, 26 Oct 2009 10:07 UTC
Image
© Unknown
Investigators Say Radiation Levels Normal

Scientists were investigating Monday whether a large crater found in a meadow in northern Latvia had been created by meteorite. One expert said it was likely a hoax.

Experts in the Baltic country rushed to the site after reports that a metorite-like object had crashed late Sunday in the Mazsalaca region near the Estonian border.

Uldis Nulle, a scientist at the Latvian Environment, Geology and Meteorology Center, said his first impression after observing the site late Sunday was that the 27-foot (nine-meter) wide and nine foot (three-meter) deep crater had been caused by a meteorite. He said there was smoke coming out of the hole when he arrived.
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Meteor

Hundreds See 'Exploding Fireball' in Sky


Trak.in News/Asian News International
Mon, 19 Oct 2009 00:00 UTC
Washington - Reports indicate that hundreds of people in the Netherlands and Germany have reported seeing a huge exploding fireball in the sky on October 13.

According to a report in National Geographic News, amateur photographer Robert Mikaelyan captured the phenomenon on camera.

Mikaelyan managed to capture several shots of the fireball as it swung low over the northern city of Groningen, Netherlands, and began to break apart into smaller chunks.

"I suddenly saw a light in the sky coming fast and quickly got the pictures taken," Mikaelyan said.

Comment: Every 20-25 years? Somebody's not been paying attention. These are from the past 3 weeks:

October 9th: Caught on camera: Meteorite streaks across New Mexico sky

October 5th: Video: Fireball lights up sky over Iceland

Septmber 28th: Cosmic shock and awe: Fireball explodes over Argentina

September 25th: Spectacular Fireball filmed over Canada

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Meteor

Canada, Ontario: Small meteorite broke windshield of SUV

Mark McNeil
The Hamilton Spectator
Fri, 16 Oct 2009 11:36 UTC
Scientists say a golf ball-sized rock that smashed through the windshield of an SUV is a meteorite, possibly from a spectacular fireball that streaked across the sky above Hamilton three weeks ago.

University of Western Ontario researchers confirmed the rock was a meteorite. It will be unveiled today at a media conference.

The fireball was captured on video Sept. 25 by a network of cameras administered by Western that regularly watch the skies at night. One of the cameras is located at McMaster University.
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Meteor

Video: Grimsby, Ontario meteor 25 September


TheSpec.com
Fri, 16 Oct 2009 10:41 UTC

Comment: You can read a report of this sighting here

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Meteor

US: Meteorite streaks across New Mexico sky

Gadi Schwartz and Matthew Kappus
KOB.com
Mon, 12 Oct 2009 17:20 UTC
Scientists think a fireball that flew over New Mexico may have been close enough to actually hit the ground.

A Santa Fe astronomer was able to catch the fiery streak on video. Thomas Ashcraft says the fireball didn't disintegrate when it hit the atmosphere. It may have landed somewhere near Taos.
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Meteor

Canada, Ontario: Grimsby meteorite found


The Standard
Thu, 15 Oct 2009 17:00 UTC
The Grimsby space rock has been found.

A fragment of meteorite the size of a golf ball smashed in the windshield of a Grimsby family's sport utility vehicle on Sept. 25, according to a media release from the University of Western Ontario.
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