Locals search for meteorites after Southeast Texas meteor streak

After a meteor streaked across the Houston skies Saturday, locals are already on the hunt for fallen fragments.

“Who’s ready for a space scavenger hunt?” KPRC2 Meteorologist Justin Stapleton posted to X Sunday afternoon.

The meteor passed over Southeast Texas around 4:40 p.m. Saturday, traveling at about 35,000 miles per hour and breaking apart about 29 miles above Bammel, according to NASA. The agency said the fragmentation of the meteor weighed about one ton with a three-foot diameter.

Multiple reports flooded in across the Houston area, with some reporting a low rumble, while others say they saw the short-lived blaze.

One resident of Bammel reported a meteorite had crashed through her roof, as reported by FOX 26 Houston. Crews who responded said they did find an unusual rock at the home and believe it is related to the meteor sightings.

NASA’s Astromaterials Research & Exploration Sciences (ARES) division released a map estimating where meteorite falls may have landed in the Houston area. It also included an estimate of where meteorites of various sizes could have landed if they were produced at all.

“The … weather radars show signatures of falling meteorites over…about an eight-minute period,” ARES wrote.

The X account MyRadar Weather added a key to the map specifying the areas laid out in NASA’s map.

The key shows meteorite hunters should start searching in the following areas:

Unlikely big meteorites (20+ pounds)

Dennis Johnson Park

I-45 Highway/Highway 99 Interchange

Imperial Oaks neighborhood

Rayford Road

Spring Creek

Medium meteorites (two to 20 pounds)

Klein

Bammel

Loutta Road

FM 1960

Cypresswood Drive

Small meteorites (less than two pounds)

Meyer Park

Intersection of Stuebner Airline Road and Louetta Road

Collins Park

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This article originally published at Locals search for meteorites after Southeast Texas meteor streak.

Locals search for meteorites after Southeast Texas meteor streak

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