Reports state that on Wednesday, a meteor weighing close to 1,000 pounds and with a length of two feet hit South Texas.
NASA said that the meteorite transformed into an air fireball and crashed close to McAllen, Texas. It had the energy of around eight tons of TNT and traveled at a speed of about 27,000 miles per hour.
“Although meteorites tend to hit Earth’s atmosphere at high speeds, they slow as they travel through the atmosphere, breaking into small fragments before hitting the ground. Meteorites cool rapidly and generally are not a risk to the public,” NASA said in a statement.
Sonic booms occur when an object travels through the air at a speed exceeding that of sound, causing a sudden release of intense pressure waves.
This explains why the birds in the footage were startled. In this particular incident, the object responsible was determined to be a half-ton meteor, weighing approximately 454 kg.
Strange how animals pick up the danger cue much faster than humans, one viewer commented on the amazing doorcam video, saying.
I thought the bird was being sucked into a meteor vortex, the second person commented.
Imagine trying to explain that to your insurance company, a fourth was forced to laugh and say.
NASA verified this information, and the meteorite was subsequently retrieved.
"The meteor seen in the skies above McAllen is a reminder of the need for NASA and other organizations to increase our understanding and protection of Earth, to combine scientific and engineering expertise to advance human space exploration, to integrate terrestrial and planetary research for furthering our understanding of the solar system, and to promote successful space missions by mitigating risk," NASA said.
The lightning mapper, as its name suggests, is typically utilized to map lightning activity. However, the National Weather Service confirmed that there was no thunderstorm or lightning activity in the area at the time the image was captured.
This indicates that the mapper detected the flash generated by the meteorite crash despite the absence of a thunderstorm.
Hidalgo County Sheriff Eddie Guerra tweeted that two aircraft reported seeing a meteor in the sky near McAllen, further confirming the meteorite sighting in the area.
