Central Queensland residents have reported bright lights and a loud boom in the night sky, sparking speculation of a meteor strike.
A spokesperson for Geosciences Australia confirmed there had been a “tremor” around Gladstone about 8.30pm on Monday and that it wasn’t caused by an earthquake.
Harvard astrophysicist Johnathan Powell told the Gladstone Observer “this sounds like a big [meteor], first in several years that has been that big”.
“I’m guessing about a rock about a metre across which would have been big enough perhaps to leave fragments,” he said.
Jacques Reimers was sitting at the beach at Boyne Island when he said he saw the entire thing unfold.
“[It] looked like a big as hell shooting star and lit up the beach then about a minute later a big bang and a shockwave came over the water and shook my car little bit was a pritty (sic) awesome experience,” he posted on the Higgins Storm Chasing Facebook page.
Lynette Emerson, who lives at Boyne Island, said her husband saw something on Monday night.
“My husband was putting [out] the garbage bins when he saw the outside of the house light up. He turned around and saw a brilliant meteor or something flash overhead and disappeared over the sea,” she posted on Facebook.
Claire Dent said she saw something bright in the sky with a “tail” and then heard a loud boom.
Police said they had received numerous phone calls from residents, but no damage has been reported.
Dozens of people took to social media to share their experiences, many describing a “bright flash”, loud “bangs” and their houses “shaking”.
Higgins Storm Chasing weather group said the meteorite most likely impacted somewhere offshore because there were no reports of damage on land.
Meanwhile, a 3.8 magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Airlie Beach at around 10.15pm, though there is nothing to suggest it was as a result of the apparent meteor strike.(Australian Associated Press)
Link: https://www.theguardian.com/science/2016/sep/27/it-lit-up-the-beach-reports-of-large-meteor-crash-off-queensland-coast
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