[meteorite-list] Bright Fireball Sighted Over China

From: Ron Baalke <baalke_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Tue Dec 14 13:03:56 2004
Message-ID: <200412141803.KAA27175_at_zagami.jpl.nasa.gov>

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2004-12/14/content_400107.htm

Mass UFO spotted in Gansu Province
China Daily
December 14, 2004

Hundreds of people in northwest China's Gansu Province witnessed an
unidentified flying object (UFO) Saturday night, and local police are
searching for what may have dropped in the area.

[Image}
A woman shows a piece of meteorite dropped onto the earth after the
nightly explosion in Gansu Province Saturday night. ufo [newsphoto]
A woman shows a piece of meteorite dropped onto the earth after the
nightly explosion in Gansu Province Saturday night.

Witnesses in Gansu's capital Lanzhou said that a strange shining object
swept through the sky at about 11:36 p.m. Saturday, following by
earthshaking sounds like bombing. They also reported that an ensuing
tremble was felt within 100 sq km from Lanzhou.

One of them, a driver surnamed Zhang, said that he saw a shining ball
with a three-meter-long trail flying from west to east and heard two
thunders right after, when he was driving from Lanzhou city to
neighboring Yongdeng county.

The local public security department confirmed that they have received
more than 700 reports on the case, some saying it was an earthquake, and
others saying it was an aerolite falling. The department has sent
policemen to search for possible fallen objects but found nothing so far.

Liu Yanan, astronomy professor at the Northwest Normal University, said
that it might be a meteoroid entering the earth's atmosphere.

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http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2004-12/14/content_400144.htm

Night sky lit up by possible meteor
By Fu Jing
China Daily
December 14, 2004

The cause of the fireball seen streaking through the night sky on
Saturday in Southwest China's Gansu Province has not yet been confirmed.

[Image]
A piece of magnet (singled out by white circle) sticks to a burnt rock,
which a local Lanzhou villager said was the fireball lighting up the sky
on Saturday night.

"Rumbling, rumbling, rumbling, and then bang," said fireman Chen
Yuanrong, from Lanzhou in the province, who admitted being left
speechless by what he saw.

The Gansu Provincial Seismology Bureau recorded that an explosion took
place in the suburbs, some 60 kilometres from downtown Lanzhou. By press
time, the strange burning object, or what remains of it, had not been
found.

Chen said he is among hundreds of Lanzhou residents who reportedly
spotted the "strange object" sweeping through the sky at 11:36 pm on
Saturday. It was accompanied by earth-shattering rumbles.

"Nearly all of my fellow firemen heard the sounds, but I was lucky
enough to see the bright object," Chen told China Daily yesterday.

At about 11:20 pm, the rumbling began and lasted approximately 15
minutes. Lying on his bed and looking out of his dormitory window, Chen
saw the object lighting up the sky, turning night into day.

"Finally came the bang, but a long rumbling preceded it," Chen said.

Xinhua News Agency reported that authorities are scouring the area for
any debris that could have fallen from the sky.

According to the Beijing-based China Times, many eyewitnesses reported
seeing two trails of unusually bright light. A taxi driver told the
paper he was in his car when everything suddenly became "as bright as day."

When he pulled over, he saw a fireball with a long tail streaking across
the sky, he said.

Police, working on the theory that it was a meteorite, set out to
investigate the matter, but they have found no concrete evidence.

The local security department confirmed they had received more than 700
calls from people reporting the sighting. Some claimed it was an
earthquake, and others assumed it was a falling aircraft.

Liu Yanan, astronomy professor at the Northwest Normal University, said
it might have been a meteorite entering the earth's atmosphere.

Local media are eager to uncover the facts or obtain evidence that could
contribute to a scientific explanation.

The Lanzhou Morning News has even posted a reward of 5,000 yuan (US$602)
for anyone offering a substantial lead.

Zeng Dehua, a reporter from the Lanzhou Evening News, said he was
closely following the UFO theory.

But he added that local authorities and research organizations have
shown little interest in finding where the object landed or what it is.

A fire broke out on a farm near Lanzhou on Saturday night which was
presumed to be caused by the fireball, and by press time Zeng, together
with local police, was on his way to the site, a three-hour drive from
Lanzhou.
Received on Tue 14 Dec 2004 01:03:50 PM PST