Glad everybody had a good time at CalStar. Thought I'd share a faraway incident from the other side of the world with you...
From today's Japan Times Newspaper:
Five Hurt as Meteor Hits Indian Homes
Bhubaneswar, India: Five people were injured and two houses gutted when a meteorite crashed to earth in eastern India after panicking hundreds of villagers as it shot across the sky, reports and residents said Sunday. The meteorite crashed Saturday in a remote village near the Bay of Bengal in the state of Orissa, local media said, adding that five people were sent to hospital with injuries. Provincial Revenue Minister Biswa Bhusan Harichandan said authorities were waiting for more concrete information about damages or casualties. The meteorite lit up the sky and caused windows to rattle as it passed over-head, sending hundreds of people rushing outside unsure what was happening, a resident of Kendrapara town said by telephone. "It was only there for just a few seconds, but it was like daylight everywhere," he said. Scientists plan to study the remains of the meteorite. "Such celestial occurrences are common in space but not visible to the naked eye. This is a rare phenomenon in this region," said Jaydev Kar, a scientist at the Pathani Samant Planetarium in Orissa's capital Bhubaneswar.
Paul (from Tokyo)