Uncovered: Chilling 19th Century Records Tell the Tale of Humanity’s Only Known Meteorite Fatality
Millions of meteors blaze past our planet every single day—yet, since 1988, only 822 were hefty enough to put on a fiery show by exploding in our atmosphere. You’d think with all that cosmic chaos, someone, somewhere, might have taken a cosmic hit, right? Well, hold onto your hats, because it turns out a man in 19th century Iraq might have been the first—and only—known earthly casualty struck down by a falling meteorite. Talk about bad timing! While most meteors dazzle us with brief light shows before burning out, this rare celestial visitor left behind a trail of tragedy and curiosity, chronicled in dusty Ottoman archives recently uncovered by researchers. So, how often does space actually throw giant rocks at us, and could history’s quietest killer actually have been a rock from the stars? Let’s dive into the cosmic mystery and uncover the story behind a meteorite strike straight out of the archives. LEARN MORE
Millions of meteors reach Earth daily, but since 1988, only 822 have been large enough to explode in the atmosphere causing meteorite showers.
Bill Ingalls/NASAOttoman records from the 19th century recount the unfortunate death of a man who was killed by a meteorite.
In the early 19th century, a man in Iraq was hit and killed by a meteorite. Records of the event provide scientists with what is likely the earliest record of a death caused by being struck by a meteorite — and the only such death uncovered so far.
As Science Alert reports, a group of researchers discovered multiple manuscripts inside the General Directorate of State Archives of the Presidency of the Republic of Turkey chronicling the death of a man hit by a falling meteorite.
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