HEALTH
Meteorite Bit Recovered In Starr County, Texas
A piece of the meteorite that entered the atmosphere over Texas last week has been recovered, according to the American Meteor Society.
Residents in southern Texas felt the ground shake and heard what sounded like an explosion as a meteor entered the atmosphere east of McAllen on Feb. 15, officials said. The next day, Hidalgo County Sheriff Eddie Guerra confirmed that Houston Air Traffic control received reports of the meteor from two aircraft.
Lightning-observing weather satellites operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration also detected a signal associated with the meteor.
“One of the satellite tools we use is the Geostationary Lightning Mapper & it measures lightning as observed from space. GLM detected a signal at 5:23 PM with no storms around,” the National Weather Service said.
NASA confirmed the meteors entry, and after analyzing data from multiple sources, estimated it to be about two feet in diameter, weighing about 1,000 pounds. The meteors speed was about 27,000 mph, generating energy equivalent to 8 tons of TNT, NASA said. The meteor broke into fragments at an altitude of 21 miles.
A photo shared by the American Meteor Society shows a smooth, dark meteorite fragment recovered on private property near El Sauz, Texas, by planetary science researcher Robert Ward.
