[meteorite-list] India Explosion Was Not A Meteorite Fall

[Ron Baalke]

http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/it-was-not-a-meteorite-say-scientists/article8311566.ece

Vellore Explosion Was Not A Meteorite Fall
S. Vijay Kumar
The Hindu
March 4, 2016

Scientists say the blast is a matter of 'serious concern".

Nearly a month after the mysterious explosion in Vellore district scientists 
have declared that they did not find any meteorite substance in the samples 
collected from the scene. Chief Minister Jayalalithaa and the State police 
had earlier said the explosion was caused by a "meteorite fall".

On February 6, a man was killed and three others injured following an 
explosion in the campus of a private engineering college at Natrampalli 
in Vellore district.

While forensic experts ruled out a land explosion since no explosive material, 
ingredient or chemical residuals were found at the scene, scientists from 
the country's top laboratories say they have reasons to believe that the 
mysterious explosion, the first of its kind, is a matter of 'serious concern".

'There is no definite proof to conclude that it was a meteorite fall. 
The samples given to us do not have the properties of a meteorite. May 
be, we are looking at the wrong samples. The footage from surveillance 
cameras, eyewitness accounts and nature of injuries certainly point to 
something serious. It is likely that something fell from the space - whether 
it bounced off or got scattered has to be seen," a top scientist from 
the National Physical Laboratory, Ahmedabad, told The Hindu on Thursday.

The focus now is on ascertaining the source of the object and preventing 
the recurrence of such falls. Scientists are looking for other remains 
of the suspicious object around the campus. "This is a top priority investigation. 
If need be, we will simulate the circumstances for a better understanding 
of the impact. As a scientist, I am curious to know what it is - it cannot 
be dismissed as a meteorite because there is no such evidence as of now,"
said the scientist seeking anonymity.