• We have updated the guidelines regarding posting political content: please see the stickied thread on Website Issues.

Stones Falling From The Sky In Slow Motion?

FrancesR

Gone But Not Forgotten
(ACCOUNT RETIRED)
Joined
Dec 14, 2014
Messages
1
Is there any information about 5 ton stones falling in slow motion from the sky.
I think it was in California, USA.
It is reported that Charles Fort has mentioned this in one of his books.

I am interested if this is the case, as they should still be there, unless they are still on their way down through the earth traveling in slow motion.
I am just interested in the story, if anybody knows more of it.
Frances.
 
If Charles Fort mentioned them, they have probably landed by now. So...it might be difficult to find them.
 
A much delayed response (better late than never) ...

I've not yet been able to locate anything that seems to match the description FrancesR provided.

An appearance of notably slow motion descent isn't all that unusual for large meteors. They are of course falling into the atmosphere from any which angle relative to the observer, and a trajectory that involves all 3 dimensions (e.g., approaching or receding from the observer's vantage point) can give the impression of lower-than-expected speed.

Most 'shooting stars' streak into and out of view in the blink of an eye, but some can seem to take their sweet time. Here's an 1860 account from the New York Times, published on August 13 of that year:

"It first appeared in the southeast, and presented the appearance of an ordinary rocket, but as it moved onward it grew in size until at the moment of its disappearance its apparent diameter was equal to the fall moon, The train or tail was not of great length, the whole resembling an elongated cone. All the hues of the rainbow, painted in fire, surrounded it, constantly scattering and throwing off sparks, rivaling in brilliancy the diamond when illumined by the sun. The apparent motion of the meteor was very slow, occupying fully fifteen seconds in traveling over about forty degrees. ..."

SOURCE: https://www.nytimes.com/1860/08/13/archives/meteoric-displays-the-great-meteor-of-aug-2.html
 
Here's a 1911 item reporting two meteor observations. One moved slowly, and the other even appeared to be stationary for a few seconds.

SlowMeteors-1911.jpg
SOURCE:
Title: Meteor of May 16, and others
Authors: Denning, W. F.
Journal: The Observatory, Vol. 34, p. 234-234 (1911)
http://adsabs.harvard.edu/full/1911Obs....34..234D
 
Back
Top