Meteor/Meteorite News 20MAR2011

Man Wants Montrose Recognized as the Meteorite Capitol of the World
KKCO-TV
"Probably several thousand fragments of that meteor, meteorite here on this Mesa," says Steve Curry. But what someone sees a random rock, Steve Curry sees as a stone from space, "We're just trying to be real good stewards of what we find here given the fact that ... (sorry rocks!)


Smithsonian keeps meteorite that fell in Va.
Boston Globe Sat, 19 Mar 2011 17:06 PM PDT
A small meteorite that crashed through the roof of a Virginia medical office last year is becoming part of the Smithsonian's Museum of Natural History in Washington....


Smithsonian Keeps Meteorite That Fell in Va.
ABC News
AP A small meteorite that crashed through the roof of a Virginia medical office last year is becoming part of the Smithsonian's Museum of Natural History in Washington. The Smithsonian paid $10000 for the meteorite to Marc Gallini and Frank Ciampi, ...


中日新聞隕石の一部故郷は小惑星イトカワ微粒子分析で確認社会CHUNICHI Web
探査機「はやぶさ」が小惑星「イトカワ」から持ち帰った微粒子の分析を進める宇宙航空研究開発機構は１１日、大きめの微粒子約５０個の元素組成が地球で見つかる「ＬＬ ...
www.chunichi.co.jp/article/.../CK2011031102000009.html


隕石から地球外バクテリア発見ＮＡＳＡ研究者| 世界のこぼれ話| Reuters
［ワシントン ６日 ロイター］ 米航空宇宙局（ＮＡＳＡ）の宇宙生物学者リチャード・フーバー氏は、３つの隕石（いんせき）から小さな化石化したバクテリアが見つかっ ...
jp.reuters.com/article/.../idJPJAPAN-19847920110307


On the road: Tunisia, in search of ancient meteorites
Astronomy Magazine (blog)
Despite the conflict, I'll be accompanying more than 30 Astronomy readers on a Tunisian tour to see the Sahara Desert, the ruins of Carthage, and the famous area of Tataouine, where in 1931 an unusual meteorite fell. We'll be joined by Melita Thorpe of ...


はやぶさイトカワの微粒子組成隕石と似た特徴 毎日ｊｐ毎日新聞
組成は地球上で見つかる隕石の大部分を占める普通コンドライトと一致した生命の起源 ... 的な特徴が地球で見つかった隕石の一部と似通っていたという結果は従来の隕石 ...
mainichi.jp/select/science/.../20110311k0000m040135000c.ht...

Wasilla, Alaska Meteor 6:54am 19MAR2011

Wasilla Alaska Meteor   6:54am  March 19th 2011
Guest129 (guest):Saw a meteor in Wasilla Alaska. March 19th 2011 at 6:54am local time. It appeared in the eastern sky traveling southward. A very bright large flare was follow by into smaller pieces lasting a few seconds.--Jonathan, Wasilla Alaska

London, England Meteor 18MAR2011

I saw an object in the sky between 2210 and 2220. Fire orange whilst
riding my bike. I reacted straight away as It looked completely out of
place and stopped to watch it. It trailed the southern sky for about a
minute. I stopped a guy in the street to ask him his opinion of what
we could see and we both drew blanks. Then it exploded into maybe 5
fireballs, 1 piece continued trailing the sky as it fell. This was last night,
London, England. I was riding up Coldharbour Lane into Brixton. - Mikah

Anyone else see this? Have photos or video?  Please give the start and stop position as well as the direction of flight, date, time and your location where sighted and your name.  Please email LunarMeteoriteHunter@gmail.com

Waverley, Australia Meteor 19MAR2011

Kia ora, was down in south Taranaki (Waverley) sober driver at a party on the night of saturday 19th. There was a couple of us looking up at a funny looking star that was very bright and flashing multiple colours. We kept an eye on this star (NW of us) for about 4-5 hours during the night before it slowly disappeared in the north. During our sky gazing a couple of us witnessed what we thought was a weird looking shooting star. It was very large, visible for about 2 seconds. it was very large and round, dark with flecks of orange and a orangey tail. Because of the size of it we thought it was within the vacinity of our home town and we paused for a while expecting to hear and feel a very large crash. But nothing came (that we heard).

  a few days prior to this during the week just after 5pm while in Kelston, West auckland saw a round object falling from the sky. looked to be of plane size maybe 50-100 miles north. it was falling straight down thru the clouds. It had to white trails behind it (so maybe it was a plane) but from where we were watching it from it looked round. Watched it fall for nearly a minute thru 3 different levels of cloud, it disappeared into lower cloud which was the lowest part of the skyline we could see.

 i can confirm dates and times once i catch up with workmates as i texted them after both sightings.

cheers,

Lee

Arizona Meteor Fireball??? 18MAR2011

Search queries indicate meteor in Arizona ~7:45 pm local time 18MAR2011

Based upon witness reports I now think that this may have been a night skydiving pyro-techniques jump by the Arizona Skyhawks or some other group (although their schedule does not indicate that they had a jump last night). - Tokyo

 http://www.arizonaskyhawks.com/about.htm

Markers indicate sighting locations of 18MAR2011 Fireball

(c) 2011 LunarMeteorite*Hunter- Tokyo/ Google Earth

Email from Reader:
Meteor or something in AZ
Wow!
I saw a stunning meteor tonight in Surprise AZ. Lasted some 30-40 sec
Pete Fredricks


Avondale, Arizona Fireballs 7:45pm 18MAR2011
Mar 19 2011, 2:20 PM

Guest504 (guest):Looked like fireballs in the sky. 3 or 4 of them, orange in color.Avondale, Arizona at around 7:45pm.

Laveen, AZ 

Laveen, AZ  lasted 1min started two fire balls split into 4 awesome

Crystal Chance

Goodyear, AZ

I saw the meteor too. I live in goodyear and was sitting in my backyard, and saw a fireball falling from the sky and then it exploded into pieces. Then about 15 minutes later there was an explosion and the sky lit up orange. This was awesome, never have I ever seen this before. - Anon.

driving on I-10 E, AZ

My wife and I saw it too while driving on I-10 E! It started as one big chunk high in the sky, and then broke into 3 pieces, and eventually broke into 5 pieces and we saw it scatter in the Surprise/El Mirage area east of the 101. It was pretty spectacular! - Charlie

Surprise, AZ

Yeah I saw that out here in Surprise too. It was in the South sky. I saw it and it lasted for almost 2 minutes, had time to call other people to let them see too. It in one piece for half of the time with an long and bright trail. Then it split up into what I counted as 5 equally sized pieces that seemed to float for a bit and spread out. Looked like the new movie battle: los angeles. Pretty awesome experience I was driving and had to pull over. -Anon.

Peoria AZ.
Hello, I took my kids for a bicycle ride and at 7:50 p.m we witnessed the huge light in the sky, then it stopped and started to divide into 8-9 light balls that formed a semi-circle!!! My 6 year old Son said, look Mommy is a shooting star make a Wish!!! But THAT was NOT a shooting star, IT WAS AMAZING!!!!!!
I am in Peoria AZ. We are east from the sighting. What caught most my attention is that once the Big fire stopped and started separating, it formed a uniform and very organized semicircle shape and these bright circles where "Suspended" meaning they stopped falling. I really hope someone recorded it on video or took pictures!!!First one for Us, but sooo exciting to witness! - Anon.


Glendale, AZ
I live in glendale az, I was driving home when I saw some lights streaming down from the sky. I first saw 2 streaks of lights then it separated to about 4 streaks, it lasted for a quite a while. -Elizabeth


Sun City, AZ
We saw this also. At first we thought it was a meteor then it split into three as several people have said. My husband thought it was a plane as there was an air show yesterday but I thought that wouldn't be happening at night. What an awesome, once in a lifetime sight. - Anon.

Anyone with a witness report please contact me; Thank you! LunarMeteoriteHunter@gmail.com

Virgin Islands/ Puerto Rico Bolide -Green Meteor Fireball 16MAR2011

St John,  US Virgin Islands Large green fireball 7:15 atlantic time 16MAR2011
Mar 18 2011, 7:08 AM

legion3rei wrote: Wed March 16 7:15 atlantic time, seen from St Croix usvi looking northeast. also seen by friend on St John USVI. Large green fireball that shattered in sky.

Coral Bay, St. John
I saw the March 16 Virgin Islands green fireball from Coral Bay, St. John. I was looking towards the Big Dipper and saw it go from a regular-looking meteor to a beautiful earth-grazer with a brilliantly green tail. A building blocked my final view of it, but I did see quite a flash as the meteor came to an end. ~Kristin

Fireball sighted over northern Puerto Rico

Was observed while touring the coast of the island, from Isabela to the area of ​​El Yunque 
  
By Pedro Bosque Pérez / pbosque@elnuevodia.com

 
A fireball was sighted this evening, along the north coast of Puerto Rico, from Isabela to the area of ​​El Yunque. 
The fireball is what is known as a bolide, a large meteor type, different from the meteorites that are regularly seen, which rapidly disintegrate. 
"It was a fireball, green" confirmed Eddie Irizarry, president of the Astronomical Society of the Caribbean (SAC). 
Irizarry said there are testimonials from people who spotted the fireball from Isabela to Rio Grande, and in the towns of Caguas and Aguas Buenas. 
The SAC President explained that a meteor may have a size between five and seven feet, and that people who see a tail and observe the process of fragmentation of the object. 
The fireball was observed between 7:15 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.

_______________________

Carribean Astronomical Society

http://nightsky.jpl.nasa.gov/club-view.cfm?Club_ID=155

Email from a witness of the event:

George Hill, Anguilla in the British West Indies.I witnessed what I now know to be a “Bolide” on Thursday evening, March 16 from George Hill, Anguilla in the British West Indies. Anguilla is about 250 east of Puerto Rico. I at first thought it was a shooting star but as it came lower it got brighter and bigger so I did not know what it was. I asked several people and no one else I have mentioned it to saw it and all looked at me strangely. My friend encouraged me to look it up on the internet and I found this website explaining it. It was an incredible sight. I have never seen anything like it. I am very glad that someone out there was able to explain to me what I witnessed and know that other people saw it as well.
I am now looking at the “supermoon” which was also an incredible sight as it rose in the sky. At first it was so bright it was hard to look at. Very large, very bright with a slight yellow/gold color and also an oblong shape something like an egg. We spend a lot of time sitting out on our balcony at night and are always spotting things. Very bright satellites (I assume) and the full moon is always a sight to behold.
I look forward to a response from you.
Thanks,
Brenda Fox
George Hill
Anguilla

If anyone else witnessed this please email details, photos and video; email
LunarMeteoriteHunter@gmail.com  Thank you!

Canada Fireball 15MAR2011 and 11MAR2011

Mar 15 2011, 11:43 PM

Guest523 (guest): At approx 12:37am,Mar 15th, I saw what appeared to be a meteor in the north sky (north of Calgary,AB). Anybody else see that?

Mar 16 2011, 9:08 AM

Guest372 (guest):Moncton, NB,Canada. 8:20 AST A reddish/orange call speeding NW-SE

Mar 17 2011, 3:34 AM

Guest65 (guest): seen a meteorite fall or a falling star on march 11, 2011 SW of Hobbema,AB,CANADA at 9:47 pm.

NEOs Green Fireball Watch 15MAR2011 - 21MAR2011

Alert- Green Fireball Watch for 15MAR2011 - 17MAR2011

Asteroid  2011 EB74 was just discovered (15MAR2011) and will pass on 16 March: have your cameras ready for an increased chance of green fireballs or bolides 15MAR-21MAR2011.
- LunarMeteorite*Hunter...Tokyo  email sightings, photos and videos of meteors; Thank You!
LunarMeteoriteHunter@gmail

UPCOMING CLOSE APPROACHES TO EARTH

1 AU = ~150 million kilometers 1 LD = Lunar Distance = ~384,000 kilometers Object Name Close Approach Date Miss Distance (AU) Miss Distance (LD) Estimated Diameter* H (mag) Relative Velocity (km/s) (2011 EB74)  2011-Mar-16 0.0022 0.9 11 m - 25 m 26.9 7.69 11885 Summanus  2011-Mar-17 0.1021 39.7 510 m - 1.1 km 18.6 16.22 (2011 EE17)  2011-Mar-18 0.1136 44.2 81 m - 180 m 22.6 10.66 (2011 EP51)  2011-Mar-18 0.0542 21.1 30 m - 68 m 24.7 6.62 (2011 EE51)  2011-Mar-18 0.0608 23.6 37 m - 84 m 24.3 18.55 (2011 EK)  2011-Mar-19 0.0830 32.3 97 m - 220 m 22.2 6.36 (2011 CY46)  2011-Mar-19 0.0485 18.9 280 m - 620 m 19.9 15.88 (2011 EW74)  2011-Mar-20 0.0256 10.0 59 m - 130 m 23.3 7.87 (2010 UY7)  2011-Mar-21 0.1760 68.5 5.2 m - 12 m 28.5 3.88 (2010 FN)  2011-Mar-23 0.0534 20.8 12 m - 28 m 26.6 8.43 (2008 EE)  2011-Mar-24 0.1436 55.9 290 m - 660 m 19.8 10.33 (2011 ES74)  2011-Mar-27 0.0308 12.0 30 m - 68 m 24.7 10.92 (2004 EM20)  2011-Mar-27 0.1536 59.8 240 m - 530 m 20.2 14.75 (2011 ED41)  2011-Mar-29 0.0704 27.4 98 m - 220 m 22.2 8.60 (2011 BO59)  2011-Mar-30 0.0404 15.7 170 m - 370 m 21.0 7.35 (2001 AD2)  2011-Mar-31 0.1033 40.2 400 m - 890 m 19.1 24.82

http://neo.jpl.nasa.gov/ca/

California Meteor 14MAR2011

California Meteor Green Fireball Meteor 6:45 am PDT 14MAR2011

California Green Meteor 14MAR2011 Sighting Locations
(c) 2011 LunarMeteorite*Hunter / Google Earth

California Green Meteor 14MAR2011 Sighting Locations including AMS reports

(c) 2011 LunarMeteorite*Hunter / Google Earth

Anyone else see this event?  We need photos or video of this event; please check your security cameras.

please email LunarMeteoriteHunter@gmail.com  Thank you!

Downey, CA  blueish/green ball  approx 6:45 AM.
Mar 14 2011, 11:09 PM

Guest564 (guest): I saw a blueish/grean ball streaking from west to east at a slight downward angle at approx 6:45 AM. I'm in Downey, CA just outside LA. Where can I find more info on these.

Cypress, California green meteor 6:45 am PDT,
Mar 15 2011, 12:28 AM

Guest293 (guest): 6:45 am PDT, fast,green meteor over Cypress, California headed NNE

Los Angeles, California green meteor about 6:45pm? (am)?
Mar 15 2011, 1:25 AM

Tiffany Lopez: At about 6:45pm pst I saw a green meteor over Los Angeles. I was on the 8th floor of an office building very close to the Hollywood sign. I saw it come down very low and shining very bright. It was just east of the Hollywood sign. It lasted for a long time and then shot towards the sign. It got brighter and eventually turned orange/yellow and I could see flames coming out of the front. Then it disappeared.

Three Rivers CA  bright and large fireball  6:45 am Pacific time 14MAR2011
Mar 15 2011, 6:52 AM

Guest276 (guest): 6:45 am Pacific time Three Rivers CA. I saw a very bright and large fireball shooting through the sky for about two seconds

Valencia, California brilliant green fireball 6:42 am 14MAR2011
Driving to work this morning in Valencia, California heading north on golden valley road I saw a brilliant green fireball traveling horizontally in the dark morning sky at 6:42 am from west to east. It slowly faded out behind the northern mountain ranges. It was much larger than a shooting star and it was not falling to earth. The sighting lasted about six seconds, roughly enough time to know it was much larger than a shooting star and traveling in a slower horizontal path across the sky. Thanks. Figured it was interesting enough to report the sighting. - Chad Erickson

Cypress, California Very fast, green meteor with short (brief) tail 6:45 am (PDT)
Heading NNE
Very fast, green meteor with short (brief) tail
Very low, but did not strike the ground
No sound
Even in morning twilight, it was very bright (three main flashes)
Allan White, amateur astronomer, meteorite hunter

Pasadena Meteor sighting at 06:45 20110314
To whom it may concern,
While driving North on Arroyo Parkway in Pasadena I saw a blue green fire ball travel from West to East and drop what looked like behind the San Gabriel Mountains just West of Mt. Wilson at 06:45 PST.
Arnie Acosta

Huntington Beach, California. green light flash 6:45 am 14MAR2011

Reporting that I saw the same green light flash across the northern sky at about 6:45 am from Huntington Beach, California. It was a green dot with a tinge of blue and it traveled from west to east in a brief downward direction with a very slight appearance of arching. It was much larger that a meteor you would see higher in the sky. Certainly a pleasant treat and a stunning way to start the day. - bhoran714

Madera Ca. Bright green Meteor @ 6:45 am. 3/14/11

I was heading south on rd 28 ½ @ ave 21 in Madera Ca. @ 6:45 am. 3/14/11 This object was large and bright green came out of the WNW and was heading ESE. I’ve never seen anything like it, no tail, just large and bright green. -Angelo Ferrari

Artesia, CA bright blue/green streak 6:45am 14MAR2011

Since I'm having no success finding any other information regarding this event (local news, etc.), I am posting my own experience. I was leaving my home in Artesia, CA heading north about to turn left and a bright blue/green streak caught my attention since it was in my direct view. It appeared to come down from west to east and faded out after about three seconds. Verizon cellphone time was 6:45am, as others have noted. I'm no stargazer so this doesn't mean much but that was the brightest meteorite I've ever seen, especially given the dawn light in the sky.
Later in the day a coworker mentioned he saw the same thing and we discussed it, agreeing on the same details above. He too was driving north when he observed it.
Steve D

Burbank, CA clover green fireball 6:45am

I saw the Meteor as well. It was clover green fire, silent and beautiful. I was standing at the cross walk on the corner of Pass and Oak in Burbank at 6:45am and happened to be taking in the morning sky when I looked over just in time to see the brilliant green light fall silently. From where I was standing I would have sworn that it hit Bob Hope airport. A brief time later I heard sirens and thought just maybe it had landed in the area. I looked for local news information throughout the day and haven't found any. I would love to know what became of it. I feel privileged to have seen it and unknowingly shared the awe of the moment with others.
Linda

Fresno, CA

Saw a lightning fast blue orb of light speeding southeast while driving to work on Herndon Avenue, here in Fresno, CA this morning at 6:45 AM - Anon

San Luis Obispo, Ca Green meteor 6:45am.
Mar 15 2011, 1:02 PM
Guest979 (guest) wrote: San Luis Obispo, Ca Green meteor 6:45am.
I was driving north on US 101 just south of San Luis Obispo city line and saw the green streak across from East to West. I saw it burn out and what appeared to be some smoke remained after the burn-out.

Camarillo, CA
harmony71 wrote: I saw a bluish ball falling from the sky today at around 6:45a.m. Any reports on that. I live in Camarillo, CA.

Santa Clarita, CA to Palmdale on the 14 bright white/blue color 6:45 am
Was driving from Santa Clarita to Palmdale on the 14. Had just crested the mountain pass and had a good view of the Palmdale valley around 6:45 am when my carpool and I saw the meteor. It was a very bright white/blue color (we thought it was an airplane coming in to land), but it was moving at the wrong downward angle and way too fast. We both gasped because we thought we were about to witness a plane crash, then it flashed a brighter color (with a little bit of orange) and disappeared before it hit the ground (about eye level with where we were driving through the mountains). That's when I realized it was the brightest meteor I have ever seen. So.. for those curious...I think it ended up somewhere in the Antelope Valley.
I just talked to my husband and he said he saw the same meteorite around the same time while sitting on our porch in Santa Clarita in the morning before work. He said it was going from West to East. That's when I figured I'd look things up to see if others saw the same thing. - Amber W.

Thousand Oaks, CA March 14,2011 at 6:45am
Thousand Oaks, CA March 14,2011 at 6:45am - I saw it ! Appeared to be moving from Thousand Oaks to Simi Valley area. I have never seen a meteor - an amazing site to see. -Anon


Westwood (L.A.) California
Guest615 (guest): 14 March ca. 6:40AM,Westwood (L.A.)California, looking due north saw very bright bluish green meteor streaking from west to east quite low on the horizon.

Thank you all for your reports!

Anyone else see this event?  We need photos or video of this event; please check your security cameras.
please email LunarMeteoriteHunter@gmail.com  Thank you!

Meteor/Meteorite News 15MAR2011

Berkeley Researchers Use Part of Meteorite to Gain Insight Into Nature of Universe The Daily Californian Sun, 13 Mar 2011 23:56 PM PDT A four billion year-old pea-sized chunk of meteorite has given researchers new insight into the nature of the universe 20 million years before the formation of the earth.... 美宇航局科学家宣称陨石中发现地外生命痕迹科技人民网 这是地球上一种巨型细菌Titanospirillum velox的照片胡佛博士宣称他在扫描隧道电子显微镜下看到一块陨石上存在某种与之大小和结构都非常类似的特征 ... scitech.people.com.cn/GB/14084918.html elp allsky: Large BC Canada Meteor Fireball Reported to ELPALLSKY ... By elp allsky Large BC Canada Meteor Fireball Reported to ELPALLSKY 12MAR2011... Email From Jacquieb In BC Canada...a white flash lit up the sky near comox b.c.canada for several seconds and caused static on radio march 12 12 30 am pacific time ... NASA Builds Network of Meteorite Cameras NBC Bay Area The only way to reliably spot a meteorite is to just stare up at the sky all night every night, so NASA has set out a bunch of networked cameras with ultra-super-mega wide-angle lenses that can watch the entire night sky all at once. ... NASA to Scan Skies 24/7 for Near-Earth-Object Fireballs Nasa is installing a network of surveillance cameras called the All-Sky Fireball Network to track meteorites as they enter the Earth's atmosphere. www.portaltotheuniverse.org/rview/101042/ The Original Rocket Dungeon: NASA All-Sky Fireball Network By Dick Clark Lindsey found this article about NASA's All-sky Fireball Network: NASA Building Network of Smart Cameras Across the US - Singularity Hub. The cameras are specialized black and white video cameras with lenses that image the entire ... The Original Rocket Dungeon - http://rocketdungeon.blogspot.com/ NASA's Network of Automated Cameras Will Never Leave the Sky Unwatched [Space] Gizmodo Fri, 11 Mar 2011 15:02 PM PST NASA is currently working on a project called the All-sky Fireball Network, its primary objective to monitor the entire night sky above the US for meteorite activity. Although limited to three fully automated cameras right now, a network of smart cameras that can record, analyze, and make publicly accessible all the events happening overhead could change our relationship with space ... NASA's All-Sky Fireball Network Will Use Smart Cameras to Track Meteors Popular Science By Rebecca Boyle Posted 03.11.2011 at 4:25 pm 0 Comments A new network of surveillance cameras will track meteorites as they enter Earth's atmosphere, helpingmeteor-hunters track where the rocks land and where they came from. ... Nasa's Fireball Network to scour the sky for meteors Wired.co.uk The aim is to help scientists recover space rock and help inform spacecraft designers striving to design meteor-proof shuttles. It is a fully automated system, which detects meteors and then sends the data to the head of Nasa's Meteoroid Environment ... 小惑星の微粒子 隕石と特徴一致 NHKニュース 日本の探査機「はやぶさ」が、小惑星「イトカワ」から持ち帰った微粒子の詳しい分析結果が初めてまとまり、地球で見つかった隕石（いんせき）の一部と特徴が一致しま ... www.nhk.or.jp/news/html/20110311/t10014588071000.html NASA trains teacher Times Record News Linda Stewart/Special to the Times Record News An asteroid case holds six different samples ofmeteorites found in various locations. The asteroids are part of a display on loan to science teacher Stephen Caldwell from NASA. ... Meteorite Men Gets The Green Light For Season Three Tucson Citizen On February 8, right in the middle of the Tucson gem and mineral shows, Variety magazine announced that my TV series Meteorite Men, which I co-host with Steve Arnold, had been renewed for a third season. It was a big day for us. ...

Belgrade, Serbia Blue Meteor 14MAR2011

Belgrade, Serbia blue meteor  12.01am on the 14 March 2011.
Mar 14 2011, 4:49 PMGuest39 (guest): Zora Bogdanovic wrote:

.In the city of Belgrade, Serbia I saw a blue light meteorite falling straight downwards in the northerly direction for at least 4-5 seconds. It was lit all the way until the horizon. At 12.01am on the 14 March 2011. It was bluish as other stars but it was visible for longer then other "falling stars"I have seen in my life.I had impression that it probably left some physical eveidence at the point of impact.Regards

Anyone else see this event?  

please email LunarMeteoriteHunter@gmail.com  Thank you!