Villagers in southern Peru were struck by a mysterious illness after a meteorite made a fiery crash to Earth in their area, regional authorities said Monday.<br /><br />Around midday Saturday, villagers were startled by an explosion and a fireball that many were convinced was an airplane crashing near their remote village, located in the high Andes department of Puno in the Desaguadero region, near the border with Bolivia.<br /><br />Residents complained of headaches and vomiting brought on by a "strange odor," local health department official Jorge Lopez told Peruvian radio RPP.<br /><br />Seven policemen who went to check on the reports also became ill and had to be given oxygen before being hospitalized, Lopez said.<br /><br />Rescue teams and experts were dispatched to the scene, where the meteorite left a 100-foot-wide (30-meter-wide) and 20-foot-deep (six-meter-deep) crater, said local official Marco Limache.<br /><br />"Boiling water started coming out of the crater and particles of rock and cinders were found nearby. Residents are very concerned," he said.<br /><br />http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070918/sc_afp/peruhealthoffbeat<br /><br /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font size="2" color="#0000ff"><em>William ( deapfreeze ) Hooper</em></font></p><p><font size="1">http://deapfreeze-amateur-astronomy.tk/</font></p><p> </p> </div>
- Status
What kind of terrain did it hit?<br /><br />Naturally occuring sulfate minerals might produce pretty much what was reported.<br /><br />More like poisoning than an illness.<br /><br /><br />Really tough luck if it hit an asbestos vein . . . . <br /><br /><br /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#ff0000"><strong>TPTB went to Dallas and all I got was Plucked !!</strong></font></p><p><font color="#339966"><strong>So many people, so few recipes !!</strong></font></p><p><font color="#0000ff"><strong>Let's clean up this stinkhole !!</strong></font> </p> </div>
I was thinking along the same lines as you Vogon. Maybe there's a clue in the boiling water?<br /><br />I just did a search and quite a few forums are discussing this, but at the moment the only source seems to be the AFP story. <br /><br /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <h1 style="margin:0pt;font-size:12px">----------------------------------------------------- </h1><p><font color="#800000"><em>Lady Nancy Astor: "Winston, if you were my husband, I'd poison your tea."<br />Churchill: "Nancy, if you were my wife, I'd drink it."</em></font></p><p><font color="#0000ff"><strong>Website / forums </strong></font></p> </div>
Clearly hit an active volcanic feature. Maybe the release of the extra sulphur dioxide<br />during the impact caused the problems.<br /><br />Andrew Brown. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#000080">"I suddenly noticed an anomaly to the left of Io, just off the rim of that world. It was extremely large with respect to the overall size of Io and crescent shaped. It seemed unbelievable that something that big had not been visible before".</font> <em><strong><font color="#000000">Linda Morabito </font></strong><font color="#800000">on discovering that the Jupiter moon Io was volcanically active. Friday 9th March 1979.</font></em></p><p><font size="1" color="#000080">http://www.launchphotography.com/</font><br /><br /><font size="1" color="#000080">http://anthmartian.googlepages.com/thisislandearth</font></p><p><font size="1" color="#000080">http://web.me.com/meridianijournal</font></p> </div>
That sounds about right. The crater is all the wrong shape for a meteorite crater.<br />And meteorites are not poisonous (well, except for the Andromeda Strain
) <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#000080"><em><font color="#000000">But the Krell forgot one thing John. Monsters. Monsters from the Id.</font></em> </font></p><p><font color="#000080">I really, really, really, really miss the "first unread post" function</font><font color="#000080"> </font></p> </div>
) <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#000080"><em><font color="#000000">But the Krell forgot one thing John. Monsters. Monsters from the Id.</font></em> </font></p><p><font color="#000080">I really, really, really, really miss the "first unread post" function</font><font color="#000080"> </font></p> </div><font color="yellow">Clearly hit an active volcanic feature. Maybe the release of the extra sulphur dioxide<br />during the impact caused the problems. </font><br /><br />Here's some video footage of the meteorite crater, in which sulphur is mentioned, so seems to back up what you said there, Andrew.<br /><br />http://en.rian.ru/video/20070918/79227696.html <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <h1 style="margin:0pt;font-size:12px">----------------------------------------------------- </h1><p><font color="#800000"><em>Lady Nancy Astor: "Winston, if you were my husband, I'd poison your tea."<br />Churchill: "Nancy, if you were my wife, I'd drink it."</em></font></p><p><font color="#0000ff"><strong>Website / forums </strong></font></p> </div>
Here's another article about it, with an accompanying photo of the crater.<br /><br />http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=296907 <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <h1 style="margin:0pt;font-size:12px">----------------------------------------------------- </h1><p><font color="#800000"><em>Lady Nancy Astor: "Winston, if you were my husband, I'd poison your tea."<br />Churchill: "Nancy, if you were my wife, I'd drink it."</em></font></p><p><font color="#0000ff"><strong>Website / forums </strong></font></p> </div>
There may be another prosaic explanation. The impactor may have hit some sort of drain. If the broken pipe is somewhere under the water, it might account for bubbling that looks like boiling.
My take is that sulfur and other compounds in the meteorite could have reacted with the ground water to produce gases incompatible with humans, especially if it were still hot. The pics I've seen show a high water table, so with many meteors being sulfur rich (pyrites etc.) some nasty stuff could result. <br /><br />I remember reading a paper (? India) where it was shown that in a high oxygen environment or H2O2 and in the presence of Ni, Co or Sn ~28% of pyrite will break down within 1-3 hours. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>
<font color="yellow">located in the high Andes</font><br /><br />Something smells all right: something smells very fishy to me about this story. I have never been to Peru, but the picture of the crater here, certainly does not look like the "high Andes" to me.
The high Andes are known for their Puna (high grasslands) and Tola (heather-like scrubs). Above the treeline but below the perma-snow, something like 3000-4000m.<br /><br />I've climbed Aconcagua and Mercedario in Peru and Illimani in Bolivia. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>.</p><p><font size="3">bipartisan</font> (<span style="color:blue" class="pointer"><span class="pron"><font face="Lucida Sans Unicode" size="2">bī-pär'tĭ-zən, -sən</font></span></span>) [Adj.] Maintaining the ability to blame republications when your stimulus plan proves to be a devastating failure.</p><p><strong><font color="#ff0000"><font color="#ff0000">IMPE</font><font color="#c0c0c0">ACH</font> <font color="#0000ff"><font color="#c0c0c0">O</font>BAMA</font>!</font></strong></p> </div>
Preliminary scientific observations suggest it was made by a chondrite.<br /><br />http://www.livinginperu.com/news-4730-environmentnature-scientist-confirms-meteorite-in-puno-peru-is-a-chondrite <br /><br />Video http://video.nbc11.com/player/?id=157540#videoid=157540<br /><br />Jon <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><em>Whether we become a multi-planet species with unlimited horizons, or are forever confined to Earth will be decided in the twenty-first century amid the vast plains, rugged canyons and lofty mountains of Mars</em> Arthur Clarke</p> </div>
The Dialy Telegraph (UK) are now saying "over 200" made ill. It all seems rather odd. One minor observation would be that the gas/whatever would have to be heavier than air, or it would rapidly disperse. Even then, it would rapidly disperse unless the meteorite released some pocket of gas in the earth that vented for some time, it's quite hard to think of a scenario. It's not as if it's a very deep crater.<br /><br />It may be prudent to carefully observe the locals for signs of bizarre mutations caused by the toxic alien space meteorite, perhaps leading to a "zombie" state which they will transmit from person to person, ultimately enveloping the world. Alternatively, a thorough study should be undertaken for alien spores, eggs, unusual mobile, sentient plants and mysterious glowing things.
I suspect it is probably psychosomatic. Lage meteorite crashes to earth, people are going to be all shook up and will imagine all sorts of symptoms.<br /><br />Meteorites don't emit toxic gases, nor do they carry viable microorganisms.<br /><br />Jon <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><em>Whether we become a multi-planet species with unlimited horizons, or are forever confined to Earth will be decided in the twenty-first century amid the vast plains, rugged canyons and lofty mountains of Mars</em> Arthur Clarke</p> </div>
There may also be the highly contagious "camera limelight virus" involved also called the "5 minutes of fame infection", which is often brought to innocent local communities by the camera crews.
<font color="yellow">nor do they carry viable microorganisms.</font><br /><br />Probably right. But if this one did, that would be the Science story of the millenium, and the last millenium too!!! But alas highly unlikely, I tend to agree with the other posters that 15-minutes-of-fame-virus is much more likely than ET arriving via meteorite and infecting the masses.
<font color="yellow">The high Andes are known for their Puna (high grasslands) and Tola (heather-like scrubs). Above the treeline but below the perma-snow, something like 3000-4000m.</font><br /><br />I stand corrected, but this whole story still smells fishy to me. <br /><br />BTW, congrats on climbing Aconagua, that's quite an accomplishment. I climbed one 3+ centennial in Colorado, and that damn near killed me. <br /><br />
From SDC today:<br /><br /><font color="yellow">Sometimes these things land hundreds of thousands of miles away from where [people] think they will land," Grossman said.</font><br /><br />Hundreds OF thousands of miles away -- people thought it was going to hit the earth and it hit the moon?!?!? Uh ... maybe hundreds OR thousands of miles<br />
Nice catch on the typo <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" /><br /><br />Besides, they always land "just of that next hill" for hundreds of miles <img src="/images/icons/laugh.gif" /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#000080"><em><font color="#000000">But the Krell forgot one thing John. Monsters. Monsters from the Id.</font></em> </font></p><p><font color="#000080">I really, really, really, really miss the "first unread post" function</font><font color="#000080"> </font></p> </div>
<font color="yellow"> ... The crater is all the wrong shape for a meteorite crater ... </font><br /><br />Well, although the Peruvian geologists have made the chondrite announcement, even after that, experts at London's Natural History museum seem to agree with you, MeteorWayne.<br /><br />From http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/7001897.stm ... <br /><br /><font color="yellow">"Increasingly we think that people witnessed a fireball, which are not uncommon, went off to investigate and found a lake of sedimentary deposit, which may be full of smelly, methane rich organic matter," said Dr Caroline Smith, a meteorite expert at the London-based Natural History Museum.<br /><br />"This has been mistaken for a crater."<br /><br />A team of scientists is on its way to the site to collect samples and verify whether it was indeed a meteorite. </font><br /><br />I read that as saying that a fireball was witnessed, but that may not have been what caused the crater, which was found by coincidence.<br /><br />So maybe the guys from London will arrive there and reach a different conclusion to the guys from Peru ... <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <h1 style="margin:0pt;font-size:12px">----------------------------------------------------- </h1><p><font color="#800000"><em>Lady Nancy Astor: "Winston, if you were my husband, I'd poison your tea."<br />Churchill: "Nancy, if you were my wife, I'd drink it."</em></font></p><p><font color="#0000ff"><strong>Website / forums </strong></font></p> </div>
<font color="yellow">... The crater is all the wrong shape for a meteorite crater ... </font><br /><br />I originally thought that this could be an eruption of methane and/or CO2 clathrate derived from some previously unknown subsurface deposit.<br /><br />Perhaps the climate previously had been cold enough for a permafrost which trapped pervious organic matter underground, which slowly decomposed to form methane and CO2. The CH4 and CO2 could then form stable clathrates with water, and be trapped under a permafrost layer. Then later, maybe from climate warming, thawing occured, and enough pressure formed and the gases then erupted outwards, and created a crater.<br /><br />This would explain the funny shape, which I agree is un-meteor-crater like.<br />This would explain the odors and illness.<br />This would explain the rapid filling with water.<br /><br />Does anyone know the altitude and local climate where the crater was observed?<br /><br />(This mechanism would also have some analogies to the Martian spider formations) <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature" align="center"><em><font color="#0000ff">- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -</font></em> </div><div class="Discussion_UserSignature" align="center"><font color="#0000ff"><em>I really, really, really miss the "first unread post" function.</em></font> </div> </div>
So I assume then, there was no meteorite fall in Peru then?<br /><br />What happened about the report of the impactor being a Carbonaceous <br />Chondrite??<br /><br />Andrew Brown. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#000080">"I suddenly noticed an anomaly to the left of Io, just off the rim of that world. It was extremely large with respect to the overall size of Io and crescent shaped. It seemed unbelievable that something that big had not been visible before".</font> <em><strong><font color="#000000">Linda Morabito </font></strong><font color="#800000">on discovering that the Jupiter moon Io was volcanically active. Friday 9th March 1979.</font></em></p><p><font size="1" color="#000080">http://www.launchphotography.com/</font><br /><br /><font size="1" color="#000080">http://anthmartian.googlepages.com/thisislandearth</font></p><p><font size="1" color="#000080">http://web.me.com/meridianijournal</font></p> </div>
Even if the meteorite did bring some sort of lifeform would it even be able to make us sick? Since its coming from some where in space, the lifeforms would have never contacted any humans or other earth creatures for that matter. They shouldn't be able to infect us with randon sickness since they didn't evolve to be able to infect us. Does that make any sense, im just taking a guess here. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>
- Status
Similar threads
TRENDING THREADS
-
X-ray spacecraft reveals odd 'Cloverleaf' radio circle in new light (image)- Started by Admin
- Replies: 0
-
Does a cosmic 'glitch' in gravity challenge Albert Einstein's greatest theory?
- Started by Admin
- Replies: 21
-
-
After an 'emotional rollercoaster,' NASA astronauts are ready to fly on Boeing Starliner
- Started by Admin
- Replies: 0
-
A video made by me about space and the loneliness in the universe- Started by drakotol
- Replies: 54
-
Where will the annular solar eclipse on Oct. 2, 2024 be visible?
- Started by Admin
- Replies: 0
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram