Meteor's sonic boom rattles residents (AP/CNN) {NZ}

[eppur_se_muova]

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) -- Hundreds of people called emergency services to report a sonic boom Tuesday that scientists said was probably caused by a small meteor.

Residents in the southern city of Christchurch told police and fire services that the boom shook the ground and their houses.

The resident superintendent of the Mt. John Observatory, Allan Gilmore, told National Radio the sonic boom indicated the meteor was traveling "very low" and was probably between the size of a baseball and a basketball.

Witnesses said they saw a streak of light in the sky above the sparsely populated region.

Sonic booms are created when an object moves through the air faster than the speed of sound, about 700 mph.
***
more: http://www.cnn.com/2006/TECH/space/09/12/n.zealand.meteor.ap/index.html

Call Homeland Security! Ground all the planes!

Wow, just imagine if this had happened anywhere near DC ...

[havocmom]

1. Wondering if any of the corporate satellites fell,

would their patsy puppet governments lie to cover for them and help them duck any responsibility for any damages?

Just wondering...

[skids]

2. Wait, didn't one just fall there two months ago?

Or was that someplace else? What, is NZ magnetic or something?

[Dead_Parrot]

3. Weird, isn't it?

Hopfully it's just better reporting. I have enough to worry about from earthquakes, volcanoes and tsunamis without an endless stream of rocks landing on my head.

Sigh. Somtimes I wonder why I moved here...

[Throckmorton]

4. Did it scare the minority groups,

The ones in Sector 'B' I mean.

I think I'll drive over to mystic for some of that free Hamburger.