Sonic boom heard as meteor crashes into ground near McAllen, Texas
A sonic boom was captured on a home video camera as a meteor crashed into the ground near McAllen, Texas. (Fox 4)
A nearly 1,000-pound meteor measuring two feet wide crashed into South Texas on Wednesday, according to reports.
Fox station KDFW in Dallas reported that NASA confirmed the meteor broke apart as it fell through the atmosphere to its resting place near McAllen, Texas, at about 6 p.m.
A meteor from the Geminids meteor shower enters the Earth's atmosphere past the stars Castor and Pollux (two bright stars at right) on Dec. 12, 2009, above Southold, New York. (Stan Honda / AFP via Getty Images)
"Although meteorites tend to hit Earth’s atmosphere at high speeds, they slow as they travel through the atmosphere, breaking into small fragments before hitting the ground. Meteorites cool rapidly and generally are not a risk to the public," NASA said in a statement.
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The space agency posted a report of the incident along with a map showing an area where pieces of the meteor likely landed.
KDFW posted a video captured from a home security camera with birds scattering and the sound of a sonic boom.
According to the National Weather Service in Brownsville/Rio Grande Valley, multiple people reported a possible meteor in the sky west of McAllen. The weather agency also reported that the flash from the meteor was captured by a Geostationary Lightning Mapper right before 5:30 p.m.
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The lightning mapper satellite measures lightning from space, and in a Facebook post on Wednesday, the NWS said there was no thunderstorm activity in the area when the meteor crashed.
Hidalgo County Sheriff Eddie Guerra posted to Twitter that he was informed by air traffic controllers in Houston that two aircraft reported that they also saw a meteor in the sky near McAllen.
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"The meteor seen in the skies above McAllen is a reminder of the need for NASA and other organizations to increase our understanding and protection of Earth, to combine scientific and engineering expertise to advance human space exploration, to integrate terrestrial and planetary research for furthering our understanding of the solar system, and to promote successful space missions by mitigating risk," NASA said.