Peru Meteor Mystery
Did a Meteorite Crash into Peru and Make People Sick?
On Saturday, September 15, 2007, residents near Lake Titicaca in Peru reported hearing a tremendous roar in the sky overhead as a fireball above and then the ground shook and small rocks rained down from the sky.
Locals who went out to investigate the probable meteor that had just blasted into the atmosphere above them discovered a crater that looked like a watery mud pit 42 feet wide and 10 feet deep. Those in the area then began to feel ill as they smelled a sulfurous odor in the air. The residents briefly complained of headaches and stomach aches.
Initial reports were sketchy, with many doubts as to what really occurred in this southeastern portion of Peru. Some scientists doubted that a meteor actually impacted where the hole was found and that the crater was a pre-existing deformation in the earth that contained contaminants.
Crater Caused by a Meteor
But newer analysis reported in National Geographic News is confirming the theory that a meteor really did strike in the location claimed by locals. A seismograph detected a magnitude 1.5 tremor in the area when the meteorite was reported to have impacted. Scientists who traveled to the site report rock fragments that are magnetic, a common characteristic of meteorites, which can contain iron. The dirt and debris around the crater are also of an unusual color and characteristic for the area.
Tests showed no unusual radiation at the crash site. Scientists now believe the irksome gas arose when the meteorite burrowed into the ground, hitting an underground water source that was tainted with arsenic. Arsenic is a commonly substance found in the soils in Peru. The meteorite created a temporary geyser that caused an arsenic-laced steam to escape into the atmosphere.
People Fall Ill after Meteor Hits
The number of Peruvians sickened by the meteorite is uncertain. Some reports say up to 200 people felt ill after the impact. Some of them may have come into contact with the unhealthy air, while others may have acquired their symptoms through fear and the extreme agitation that such an unexpected calamity can bring.
Fortunately the region in which the meteor crashed is in the high Andean plains where few people would have been exposed to the gases.
Dangers of Meteors
The meteor impact in Peru has raised our awareness of yet another danger that can be posed to humans from space rocks. Even a smaller sized meteorite that does not flatten trees and buildings can hit at such a place as to negatively affect the lifeforms in the area.
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