Did a meteorite fall on TN college causing an explosion and killing one? Scientists finds out

Following the death of a man in an explosion on Saturday in Vellore, a team led by ISRO found an object which looks like a meteorite, and the police has sought help from the Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA), Bangalore, to confirm if it is indeed one.

 

Experts from ISRO claim that the object was 2cm in width, weighed 50 grams and looked like a meteorite. However, the Vellore district police have asked for help from the Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA), Bengaluru.

 

"We have requested experts from IIA, to come over to Vellore to examine the object and identify whether it is a meteorite. They have agreed to come here on Monday," Superintendent of Police (SP) of Vellore PK Senthil Kumari told The New Indian Express.

 

The object is brownish in colour and has air bubbles on its rigid surface. The object was found by Vellore police with the help of a team from ISRO, behind the college canteen, according to TNIE.

 

Another meteorite was suspected to have fallen 18-20 km away from the college on January 26, 2016. Some experts suggest that it could not have been a meteor as their shower was not expected till April.

 

Tamil Nadu Chief Minsiter J Jayalalithaa also said that the death of the man was caused by a meteorite. She said in a press release, “A mishap occurred yesterday when a meteorite fell in the campus of a private engineering college in Vellore district’s K Pantharappalli village…,”, adding that she had ordered the district administration and hospital officials to offer the best treatment to the three injured.