A Moroccan farmer got the shock of his life when a giant snowball fell to earth leaving a half metre hole in his land. The farmer from the Hrira region split the ice and put it in his fridge to prevent it melting. Local authorities then sent a team of scientists who confirmed that it was in fact a 'mega meteor' from space.
Fire in the Sky
Hawley, Texas Sandia Sentinel All-sky Camera, Kevin Palivec
Colorado, Utah Daytime Meteor, ~17:15 MST, 21 December 2012
21 December 2012 - Linda Mossman. Eagle, Colorado @ 17:30 ish?
21 December 2012 - Linda Mossman. Eagle, Colorado @ 17:30 ish?
About 7 seconds duration. We were facing West. Object started in the Southwestern sky and fell towards the Northwestern horizon. Started with red flash, like fireworks, then bright white as it crossed the sky. As bright as the moon. This was very cool to watch with my son. We couldn't believe it stayed in the sky as long as it did.21 December 2012 - Jerry Hernandez. Monticello, Utah, USA @ 17:19 MST
3 seconds duration. I was traveling North on Highway 191. It appeared directly over the center of my windshield. It traveled South, to the right. It was not fully dark and a very bright light streaked down and a spark of it came off the top right. Both continued down. Brighter than Venus. A spark came off the top right. Amazing it was bright considering it wasn't even dark yet.21 December 2012 - John Hill. Nederland, Colorado ,USA @ 17:17 Mountain Standard Time
3 seconds duration. I was facing West. Direction of travel South to North. Bright white with no sound observed as I was in closed car. Brighter and larger than a planet. Very round, quite large, and relatively slower moving than a meteor.21 December 2012 - Kathy Treanor. Salem, Utah, USA @ 17:15:00
5 seconds duration. South-Northeast. White, no sound, very bright and low. Same color as moon. 5 pieces fell off in trail, daylight hours.
Santa Barbara, California, U.S. - A series of jolts or "booms" as some viewers have described them are sending nervous jitters through the Tri-counties.
The first one hit at 9:34am in the Santa Barbara area followed by at least a half dozen more over the next hour. People have been calling into the KEYT newsroom from Thousand Oaks to Morro Bay saying they felt them.
The San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Dept. released a statement at 10:42am explaining that it confirmed through various state and federal agencies that there has been no seismic activity, but it may be activity caused by military aircraft flying over our area.
The U.S. Geological survey website shows a 2.6 magnitude quake hit the Cherry Valley area in Riverside County at 9:34am, but it seems unlikely that would be the source of the jolts.
Vandenberg Air Force base is not reporting any military activity. Staff Sgt. Riendeau at the base said in a phone interview they are "looking into the issue to find out what's going on."
Steve Walter, a seismologist with the USGS in Menlo Park, told KEY News in a phone interview that the jolts appear to be happening in the atmosphere, something he calls "air phase". He said many of the phone calls he received so far are from the Vandenberg, Lompoc, Diablo Canyon and Santa Maria areas. He said the reports he has heard are similar to what the Navy does in Northern California when they blow up older explosives. The blasts can be felt for up to 100 miles away.
KEY News will post the latest on this story as we get it and on KEY News tonight.
The first one hit at 9:34am in the Santa Barbara area followed by at least a half dozen more over the next hour. People have been calling into the KEYT newsroom from Thousand Oaks to Morro Bay saying they felt them.
The San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Dept. released a statement at 10:42am explaining that it confirmed through various state and federal agencies that there has been no seismic activity, but it may be activity caused by military aircraft flying over our area.
The U.S. Geological survey website shows a 2.6 magnitude quake hit the Cherry Valley area in Riverside County at 9:34am, but it seems unlikely that would be the source of the jolts.
Vandenberg Air Force base is not reporting any military activity. Staff Sgt. Riendeau at the base said in a phone interview they are "looking into the issue to find out what's going on."
Steve Walter, a seismologist with the USGS in Menlo Park, told KEY News in a phone interview that the jolts appear to be happening in the atmosphere, something he calls "air phase". He said many of the phone calls he received so far are from the Vandenberg, Lompoc, Diablo Canyon and Santa Maria areas. He said the reports he has heard are similar to what the Navy does in Northern California when they blow up older explosives. The blasts can be felt for up to 100 miles away.
KEY News will post the latest on this story as we get it and on KEY News tonight.
She admits it sounds nutty.
But Janine Coburn swears she spotted a fiery green orb streaking across a clear night sky on the weekend. It was moving faster than an airplane, Coburn insists, and it was bigger than a falling star.
"It's as if it were flung by a giant," she said. "It was vivid."
The Somerset resident was out for some fresh air shortly before midnight on Sunday when she watched the mysterious object soaring north for at least five seconds before vanishing.
It's left Coburn scratching her head to explain the apparent cosmic show. Combing through online communities has been fruitless, so she's asking Calgarians for answers.
"I've done research since then and it hasn't made me feel any more comfortable with what I saw," she said Tuesday.
Phil Langill, director of the University of Calgary's observatory, is also unsure what Coburn witnessed. Photos pulled from a sky camera reveal Sunday was actually a cloudy evening, which leads Langill to believe it was a low-flying object - possibly fireworks.
But Janine Coburn swears she spotted a fiery green orb streaking across a clear night sky on the weekend. It was moving faster than an airplane, Coburn insists, and it was bigger than a falling star.
"It's as if it were flung by a giant," she said. "It was vivid."
The Somerset resident was out for some fresh air shortly before midnight on Sunday when she watched the mysterious object soaring north for at least five seconds before vanishing.
It's left Coburn scratching her head to explain the apparent cosmic show. Combing through online communities has been fruitless, so she's asking Calgarians for answers.
"I've done research since then and it hasn't made me feel any more comfortable with what I saw," she said Tuesday.
Phil Langill, director of the University of Calgary's observatory, is also unsure what Coburn witnessed. Photos pulled from a sky camera reveal Sunday was actually a cloudy evening, which leads Langill to believe it was a low-flying object - possibly fireworks.
17 December 2012 - Kamalpreet Singh, Jalandhar, Punjab, India @ 19.36
5 seconds duration - Travelling from left to right. Bright yellow colour. Same brightness as the moon, like a huge ball from the sky.17 December 2012 - Rahul Sharma, Jalandhar, PUNJAB, India @ 18.50 (+5.30)
5 seconds duration - N-E direction, heading east and downward diagonally. Firstly it was bright green/blueish, then it changed into orange around midway. No sound. It was as bright as the full moon, like a huge burning ball. I have seen many meteors in my life, but this one was huge. It lit up the sky like a firework.
There's a lively discussion on the Web about this video of a burning object streaking across the Warwick sky.
A providencejournal.com reader says a co-worker shot the video just before 5 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 13.
One commenter on YouTube declared it a fake. Others had various explanations.
A providencejournal.com reader says a co-worker shot the video just before 5 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 13.
One commenter on YouTube declared it a fake. Others had various explanations.
© YouTube
A big fireball plunged into a body of water near the Black Sea on Dec. 11 in the city of Ordu in Turkey.
A big fireball plunged into a body of water near the Black Sea on Dec. 11 in the city of Ordu in Turkey.
This report shows the security cam footage and says the falling bright object was a meteorite. The scene was uploaded to YouTube with a "boom" sound effect. Naturally, a couple of users noticed the odd sound.
"LOL, I love how these people dubbed the sound in. Terminal flash and sonic booms never happen at the same time. Sonics follow way later. Great video though," writes milkywaypride99.
"Fake!!! The speed of sound is 331.3 meters per second (1,087 feet per second) in dry air at 0 degrees Celsius (32 degrees Fahrenheit). At a temperature like 28 degrees C (82 degrees F), the speed is 346 meters (1135.17ft.) per second. As you can see, the speed of sound changes depending on the temperature and the humidity; but if you want a round number, then something like 350 meters per second and 1,200 feet per second are reasonable numbers to use," writes gjonesy9.
Flaring brighter than the full moon, this spectacular Geminid meteor lit up the sky above Cartersville, Ga., at 2:29 a.m. EST on the morning of December 14, 2012. NASA says that this is one of the brightest fireballs observed by the NASA network of meteor cameras in over four years of operation.
The 2012 Geminid Meteor Shower, which peaked on December 13th and 14th, is the most intense meteor shower of the year and can still be seen this week. It lasts for days and can be seen from almost any point on Earth.
The 2012 Geminid meteor shower can be seen around 8 p.m. every evening at the viewer's respective local time. The meteor shower will be the most intense and directly overhead during the hours of 1 a.m. to 3 a.m. The meteor shower sets in the western sky just before sunrise.
A new moon coincides with the 2012 Geminid meteor shower peak. So the dark night sky will make the display even more spectacular.
Geminid meteors stream from a point called "the radiant" in the constellation Gemini.
The 2012 Geminid Meteor Shower, which peaked on December 13th and 14th, is the most intense meteor shower of the year and can still be seen this week. It lasts for days and can be seen from almost any point on Earth.
The 2012 Geminid meteor shower can be seen around 8 p.m. every evening at the viewer's respective local time. The meteor shower will be the most intense and directly overhead during the hours of 1 a.m. to 3 a.m. The meteor shower sets in the western sky just before sunrise.
A new moon coincides with the 2012 Geminid meteor shower peak. So the dark night sky will make the display even more spectacular.
Geminid meteors stream from a point called "the radiant" in the constellation Gemini.
What the heck landed in Christ Beiler's cornfield nearly two weeks ago? A number of people in East Lampeter and Upper Leacock townships reported hearing a loud explosion Sunday, Dec. 2, about 5 a.m.
That noise coincided with what Beiler reportedly saw while he was milking cows on his farm along Hobson Road near Smoketown.
According to a friend, Sam Stoltzfus, of Gordonville, Beiler saw a light streak into his field before he heard a "boom.''
"He did find the spot in his field and you can still see it,'' Stoltzfus reports. "There was also a strong acrid smell. That's why they called the fire company.''
Christian Kauffman, assistant fire chief of the Witmer Fire Co. and Stoltzfus' son-in-law, says a number of people dialed 911 and the county's 9-1-1 Center alerted the fire company. Among the concerned were East Lampeter Township Police officers. They heard the explosion inside their station along Route 340, Kauffman says.
That noise coincided with what Beiler reportedly saw while he was milking cows on his farm along Hobson Road near Smoketown.
According to a friend, Sam Stoltzfus, of Gordonville, Beiler saw a light streak into his field before he heard a "boom.''
"He did find the spot in his field and you can still see it,'' Stoltzfus reports. "There was also a strong acrid smell. That's why they called the fire company.''
Christian Kauffman, assistant fire chief of the Witmer Fire Co. and Stoltzfus' son-in-law, says a number of people dialed 911 and the county's 9-1-1 Center alerted the fire company. Among the concerned were East Lampeter Township Police officers. They heard the explosion inside their station along Route 340, Kauffman says.
Comment: Update: Original Story from Hespress.com:
There have been many reports of ice meteors, or megacryometeors, falling out of clear blue skies in recent years:
50-pound Ice Chunks Fall From Sky
Car-destroying chunk may be icy meteor
Chunk of ice fell from the sky and shocked local residents
Pennsylvania, US: Massive mystery ice chunk lands in Neffsville man's lawn
US: Chunk of Ice Crashes Through Roof of Colorado Home
Mysterious icy chunk smashes through roof in California, US
Mysterious Chunk Of Ice Falls To Earth
Ice Chunk Crashes Through Delaware Co. Home
Ice crashes through college gym - No one is injured by the 2-foot chunk and no one knows yet where it came from.
Mysterious Ice Chunk Breaks Hole in Roof
Ice chunk falls from sky in Japan