the "flames" unsell it for me.
>From: Ron Baalke <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] (Meteorite Mailing List)
>Subject: [meteorite-list] Meteorite Lands In Back Yard In South Carolina?
>Date: Tue, 10 Jun 2003 08:10:28 -0700 (PDT)
>
>
>
>http://www.beaufortgazette.com/local_news/story/2606419p-2418584c.html
>
>Meteorite lands in back yard
>By CHRIS BENDER
>The Beafort Gazette (South Carolina)
>June 10, 2003
>
>Dianne Morris saw something out of this world while
>walking her dogs early Monday morning.
>
>A meteorite landed in the Beaufort resident's back yard at
>about 3:40 a.m.
>
>"I was only about 15 feet away from it when it came down,"
>said Morris. "It had a smoky white tail."
>
>Morris said small glowing flames dropped from it as it came
>down and it made a loud popping sound before hitting the
>ground. It didn't leave a depression, and she was able to
>pick up several pieces.
>
>Morris plans on keeping the few extraterrestrial pieces.
>While reports like Morris' do come in on occasion, they
>usually aren't actual meteorites, said Christina Lacey, a
>professor at the University of South Carolina's physics and
>astronomy department.
>
>"I've never heard of (the reports) panning out," Lacey said.
>"Certainly, meteorites do hit the Earth."
>
>Nothing unusual was detected by the radar at the air station
>Monday morning, said Master Sgt. Terrance Peck, public affairs
>chief for Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort. Officials at the National
>Weather Service in Charleston said a meteorite would be moving
>too fast for them to track.
>
>What a meteorite is made of is one of the factors that determines
>whether it makes it to the Earth's surface. Lacey said meteorites
>coming from passing comets, which are composed of ice, usually burn
>up, while iron-based meteorites that come from asteroids might make
>it to the surface.
>
>Meteorites usually are made of melted minerals with some containing
>iron-nickel alloys.
>
>"Most meteorites tend to be very simple" in composition, Lacey said.
>"Most meteorites do land in water."
>
>According to the National Air and Space Administration's Web site,
>each day as many as 4 billion meteoroids, most minuscule in size,
>enter Earth's atmosphere. Most of these meteors burn up from
>atmospheric friction and never reach the ground.
>
>The angle at which the meteoroid enters the planet's atmosphere can
>also determine whether it breaks up, skips back into space or explodes.
>Lacey said rarely do man-made meteorites make it to Earth, and when
>they do it's usually over water.
>
>If someone does recover something they think is a meteorite, Lacey
>said geologists can usually tell whether it's from outer space or not.
>
>"You could talk to the geology department at Clemson, the University
>of South Carolina or the College of Charleston and they could identify
>it," Lacey said. "A lot of times they can do it just by looking at it."
>
>Morris said she doesn't plan on doing anything like that, though she
>does admit it's somewhat unbelievable.
>
>"I just wish I had a video camera at the time," she said. "Without a
>movie, it's like no one believes you."
>
>Contact Chris Bender at 986-5553 or [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
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