- Dramatic meteor over Seattle on June 3rd, 2004, at 02:40
hrs. (local).
-
- Jeff,
-
- I suspect you already have seen the news reports, but
we had a very dramatic meteor (suspected) pass over Puget Sound this morning.
The measured time of the event was 02:40 hrs. (Pacific) on Thursday morning,
June 03, 2004.
-
- The object was seen from Vancouver Island, and from multiple
points on the Olympic Peninsula in western Washington. NUFORC has received
approximately two dozen reports from eyewitnesses, including a few in Spokane,
and from several in Oregon, as well, so it must have been quite high during
the early portion of its entry into the atmosphere.
-
- One witness in north Seattle reported that the event
occurred in the northern sky, from his vantage point, and that he thinks
it disappeared from his sight before it reached his location, i.e. it did
not pass to the south of his position. The same witness, who described
himself as an amateur astronomer, stated that he counted the elapsed time
between the final flash and the rumbling he heard was approximately 10
seconds. Hence, the object may have reached to within approximately 2
miles of the Earth's surface, which is rather low, relative to most dramatic
meteors. They usually either burn up, or fragment, at an altitude above
10 or 20 miles above ground level.
-
- Many people apparently reported to news outlets in the
Seattle area that they thought the object had "landed" near Centralia,
WA, located on Interstate 5 about 110 miles south of Seattle. I suspect
those reports may be the result of optical illusion, but time, and other
reports, will give us a better idea on the groundtrack the object followed.
-
- I thought your readers might like the facts surrounding
the event. I suspect that it may make it into the national news today.
-
- Regards,
-
- Peter B. Davenport, Director
- National UFO Reporting Center
- P. O. Box 45623
- University Station
- Seattle, WA 98145
- E-Mail: director@ufocenter.com
- Web: www.UFOCENTER.com
- Reporting Hotline: (206) 722-3000
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