by NEW YORK (AP) — A doorbell camera on a Canadian home captured rare video and audio footage of a meteorite hitting Earth as it smashed into a couple’s walkway.
When Laura Kelly and her partner returned home after an evening walk in July, they were surprised to find their sidewalk littered with dust and strange debris, according to the Meteoritical Society posted the video with his report.
They checked their security camera and saw something slam into their entrance, creating a cloud of smoke and crackling.
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The pair reported what they found to the University of Alberta’s Meteorite Reporting System, and curator Chris Herd examined samples of the debris to confirm its interstellar origin.
Meteorites are pieces of space rock that strike Earth after surviving a flight through its scorching atmosphere. According to NASA, about 48 tons (43,500 kilograms) of similar debris hits Earth every day, but it is much more likely to fall into the ocean than onto someone’s front door.
During meteor showers, which occur several times a year, the space rocks also appear as shooting stars across the night sky.
The footage is believed to be a first. While cameras have captured meteor strikes in the sky, capturing the sound of a full meteor impact on video is rare.
The space rock, officially registered on Monday, was named Charlottetown after the town on Prince Edward Island in eastern Canada where it hit.
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The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Science and Educational Media Group of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
