A metal object that fell onto the bedroom floor of a New Jersey resident's home is believed to be a meteorite from the Eta Aquariid meteor shower.
The object, believed to be a meteorite, measures 10 x 15 cm. Photo: Hopewell Police Department
Police are still trying to determine the exact nature of the object, although authorities suspect it is related to the current Eta Aquariid meteor shower, the Hopewell, New Jersey, Police Department said in a statement on May 8. The Eta Aquariid meteor shower is an annual phenomenon in which debris from the famous Halley’s comet passes through Earth’s atmosphere. The astronomical event peaks on May 6, according to the American Meteor Society, and will last through May 27.
"I touched the object because I thought it was a random rock," local resident Suzy Kop said, revealing that the object had fallen through the roof of her father's bedroom. "It was still warm. Luckily no one was in the room."
The outer layer of meteorites can be hot from the friction and pressure of flying through Earth’s atmosphere at high speeds, though they usually cool considerably by the time they hit the ground. Meteorites fall all the time, evenly distributed across the Earth’s surface. But they are rare for a home or a residential area, since most of the planet is covered by oceans or sparsely populated.
But authorities have reported similar incidents. Last November, a meteorite from the Taurid meteor shower struck a home in Northern California, sparking a fire that later broke out. Dustin Procita, a resident of Nevada County, was home with his two dogs at the time of the accident, one of which died in the fire.
New Jersey authorities said the suspected meteorite was 4 by 6 inches in size. It went through the roof and ceiling, then hit the hardwood floor and remained there. The local police department contacted several other agencies to help identify the object and ensure public safety.
Meteorites can be difficult to distinguish from other metal-containing rocks. Meteorite hunters look for a glassy coating on the outside of the object that melts as it passes through Earth’s atmosphere, called a fusion crust. Another distinguishing feature is the sample’s weight. Meteorites will be much heavier than similar-sized rocks on Earth because of the dense metal they contain.
An Khang (According to CNN )
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