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Suspected Meteorite Blamed for Illness

AP
Posted: 2007-09-19 08:31:46
Filed Under: Science News
LIMA, Peru (Sept. 18) - A supposed meteorite that crashed in southern Peru over the weekend has caused hundreds of people to suffer headaches, nausea and respiratory problems, a health official said Tuesday.

Local media have reported eyewitness accounts of a fiery ball falling from the sky and smashing into the desolate Andean plain near the Bolivian border Saturday morning. Officials have said it was a meteorite.

Jorge Lopez, director of the health department in the southern state of Puno, told The Associated Press that 200 people have been sickened by "toxic" fumes emanating from the resulting crater, which is some 66 feet wide and 16 feet deep.

"This is caused by the gas they have inhaled after the crash," Lopez said. He added that some 1,500 people live nearby.

But meteor expert Ursula Marvin, cast doubt on that theory, saying, "It wouldn't be the meteorite itself, but the dust it raises."

A meteorite "wouldn't get much gas out of the earth," said Marvin, who has studied the objects since 1961 at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory in Massachusetts. "It's a very superficial thing."

Three geologists from Peru's Geophysics Institute are expected to present a report on the incident on Thursday.

Hernando Tavera, a geophysicist at the institute, said similar cases were reported in 2002 and 2004 elsewhere in southern Peru but never confirmed as meteorites.

Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. All active hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL.
2007-09-18 13:21:53
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Recent Comments

1 - 10 of 393
393 comments

Alchemist74 09:55:00 AM Sep 25 2007

krystmc555 is on the right track. The tail of the object was green. That is a good indication that it was probably metal based...either from space or from earth junk left in orbit but most likely from junk since it would probably have to be pretty concentrated with metal. (metals burn with color... if you don't know your chemistry) A lot of the object probably vaporized on impact so if it was a metal it would be pretty toxic to everyone breathing in the vapors.

cummingswho 05:40:34 PM Sep 20 2007

Who has the movie rights in Peru?

cummingswho 05:40:31 PM Sep 20 2007

Who has the movie rights in Peru?

Soccerslayer55t 04:44:01 PM Sep 20 2007

well there are 2 options .... the odor of the meteor actually has small but smart aliens in it.............................or the meteor has bad radiation

krystmc555 03:03:04 PM Sep 20 2007

Was it a meteorite or just the space junk we left in orbit. There is
plenty of it up there.

tree9616 09:11:23 AM Sep 20 2007

I propose that the meteorite may have stirred up "trash" that was already here. I'm no scientist by any means, but .... Hasn't the "jungle" been a "breeding grounds" for other terrestrial life forms? They may have just been laying dormant.

transcrono 05:45:30 AM Sep 20 2007

Beware! this is the first sign of a zombie infection! dont let the government cover it up! Start to prepare yourselfs for the worst!

Laurarvail1 12:18:26 AM Sep 20 2007

It's hard to confirm a meteorite strike as soon as they happen... you have to find something. If the heat raised by the meteor entering the atmosphere combined with compunds int he soil... yeah I can buy that... it could make people sick...

dramazee 08:00:00 PM Sep 19 2007

OJ DID IT BACK IN THE 1990 'S AND NOW IN LAS VEGAS WHAT THE "FUDGE" I LOVE SICK METEROITE

camachow496 07:25:18 PM Sep 19 2007

Let me see, a meteor hit Arizona 49,000 yrs ago, and that they can without any doubt tell us it was a meteor. But one hits Peru in 2002 and 2004 and the Geophysicist can not confirm what it is? Unbelievable!! I thought science was much more advanced today.

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393 comments

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