Suspected Meteorite Damages Houston Home After Fireball Sighting

Residents in the Houston area reported a bright fireball and loud booms on Saturday afternoon, leading to the discovery of a suspected meteorite that damaged a home in Spring, Texas. Sherrie James, the homeowner, recounted that her grandson found a hole in the ceiling, and upon inspection, she discovered a rock that resembled a meteorite. She contacted the local fire department, which initially considered the possibility of debris from an aircraft. However, they later informed her of reports indicating a meteor had exploded over northern Houston, breaking into multiple pieces.

NASA confirmed the event, stating that eyewitnesses observed a bright fireball at 4:40 p.m. local time. The meteor became visible at an altitude of 49 miles above Stagecoach, northwest of Houston, and traveled southeast at 35,000 mph, disintegrating 29 miles above Bammel, just west of Cypress Station. The meteor, approximately three feet in diameter and weighing about a ton, fragmented, creating a pressure wave that caused the booms heard by residents. Doppler weather radar detected meteorites produced between Willowbrook and Northgate Crossing.

Local residents described the sounds accompanying the event. Bridgeland resident Wendy Camardelle Heppner noted it "sounded like thunder, but clear skies," while Dickinson resident Shylie Troquille reported seeing a small ball of fire in the sky that quickly disappeared.

This incident follows a similar event earlier in the week, when a meteor exploded over Ohio, creating a sonic boom heard as far as Pennsylvania. That meteor, about two meters in diameter and weighing approximately six tons, traveled at 45,000 mph before disintegrating.