Remember the possible meteorite that hit a home in Illinois in March?
Astronomy magazine is reporting it may have been a chunk of steel from a wood chipper.
The alleged “meteorite” that smashed through a window Monday, March 12, at the home of David and Dee Riddle of 25 Partner Place, Bloomington, may be a chunk of ordinary steel plate spit out of an industrial wood-chipper about 1,000 feet (300 meters) from the Riddle home, according to James Day, a geology professor at Illinois State University who examined the reputed space rock. “We have our suspicions this may not be a legitimate meteorite.”
It would have been nice of Astronomy magazine to say just why the geologist thinks it might be from a wood chipper, but that would have involved some actual reporting. Maybe Sky and Telescope will get the story.
Anyway, final results will have to wait for an analysis of the actual chemical composition, which will be fairly definitive, so we’ll see. I’m hoping to hear more soon.
Tip o’ the Whipple Shield to Nancy Atkinson of New Forks Media.
April 6th, 2007 at 2:40 pm
-We found a list of the bomber’s plans at the scene.
We analysed the paper.
– And?
-The paper is from Statesville Prison.
– Are you sure?
– Positive, the wood is from the rare Canary Island Pine.
It only grows in Oregon.
Contacting paper mills led us to a distribution centre in Tacoma.
There the trail ended.
– How did you trace it to Statesville?
– The letterhead.
Naked Gun 33 1/3
April 6th, 2007 at 2:44 pm
Perhaps we should just ask the Disco Institute to tell us if it’s “Intelligently Designed” since they’re sooooo good at it.
April 6th, 2007 at 8:42 pm
Both links sent me to the previous BA Blog entry for the “meteorite”. Does the Astronomy Magazine article suggest some sort of fraud? Was there an accomplice in the woodchipper? Or is Illinois not far enough North for that sort of thing?
April 7th, 2007 at 7:46 am
Interesting development… I’d love to hear what they find out…
April 7th, 2007 at 8:51 am
Analyses STILL on the way?
How flipping hard is it to analyze a chunk of steel?
I mean, we can get faster analyses of the atmosphere of planets 200 light years away.
Gary 7
April 7th, 2007 at 10:16 am
In real life, unlike CSI, 99% of labs always are already busy doing something else when the evidence arrives…
“But, I’m in a hurry!” “M’kay, tell that to the other 50 guys who’ve been waiting their results for 6 months. See you in september if you’re lucky…”
April 7th, 2007 at 8:51 pm
OK I’m having a hard time getting a sense of size on this “meterorwrong” Are there any pictures with it next to a rule for scale. How much does this thing weigh?? The damage it did to the computer desk looks fairly small. I guess the point I’m trying to get too is how hard would the wood chipper have to have to still throw it 300 meters & still have it come into the house at a “steep” angle. 300 meters is quite a distance to throw a chunk of metal. I wish I could hit an aerodynamic light golf ball that far.
April 7th, 2007 at 11:23 pm
From prior pictures it looked about the size of a deck of cards.
If the chipper pitched it mostly straight up (say around 80 degrees), it would have a fairly steep reentry angle. Not sure how high a wood chipper can through a card-deck-sized chunk of steel.
A Phil, what do you mean you want to see the explanation? Their saying so isn’t justification enough?
April 8th, 2007 at 12:29 am
>>>it may have been a chunk of steel from a wood chipper.
Wow.
How did a chunk of steel from a wood chipper get out into space?
…
(crickets)
I’ll go now.
April 8th, 2007 at 10:10 pm
I really hope that with the aid of x-ray florescence, neutron activation, electron scatter, electron spin resonance, microscopic analysis, ultrasonic imaging, ion counting, mass spectrography, polarized light imaging, laser spectroscopy and all sorts of other expensive tests we may finally be able to put the whole chunk of steal/meteorite mystery to rest. Or at the very least… have some idea which is the more likely candidate.
April 9th, 2007 at 6:52 am
http://www.astronomy.com/asy/default.aspx?c=a&id=5264
I love the “Anybody know a good lawyer?” bit. Hey, my uncle’s a lawyer in that part of the world. Hmm. At least we can all agree that it was a UFO…
April 9th, 2007 at 7:06 pm
You know… this is way too good a story to let the facts get in the way of. If I had a meteorite hit my house…. but then turn out to not be a meteorite and not very interesting…. I think I’d hold onto the story. And also pick up a real one on ebay to pass off.
April 9th, 2007 at 10:12 pm
Did ABR saysomething about an accomplice in the woodchipper … OUCH!
Not to mention … mess-ssy!
Plus, umm .. Phil .. don’t you write for ‘Astronomy’ magazine sometimes? Not sure why you’d knock them then … Okay they’re not the ‘Washington Post’ but then I don’t think there’ that kind of magazine /newspaper … More artic les and science essays & news releases than investigative journalism and fast-breaking news.
Personally, I prefer ‘Sky & Space’ but then considering *I* write for them I’m biased there! Not that my writing for ‘em should put anyone off I hasten to add – I’m all astronomy in that and no politics folks!