A meteorite fell at his door and the doorbell camera recorded it all.
Your order of space rocks has been delivered.
A Ring doorbell camera captured the fall of a meteorite on Prince Edward Island, Canada, on July 25, 2024. Laura Kelly and Joe Velaidum, a couple living on the island, recorded the moment a meteorite struck their property. The sound of the impact resembled the noise of breaking ice. This event could be the first video recording of a meteorite that also captured its sound.
With the proliferation of doorbell cameras, they have become involuntary witnesses to various strange situations, from fragile packages tossed by messengers to sightings of lurking animals. However, Velaidum expressed that this event is unmatched. According to the Meteoritical Society, the meteorite is one of 69 known to have fallen in Canada. Velaidum shared his astonishment at the improbability of a meteorite from hundreds of millions of kilometers away ending up in his small neighborhood.
Approximately 95 grams of debris were recovered from the impact. NASA estimates that about 48.5 tons of meteoritic material fall to Earth daily, although most vaporizes or sinks into oceans, which cover more than 70% of the planet. To date, over 82,000 meteorites have been identified, mostly from the asteroid belt, although a small percentage originates from Mars and the Moon.
On the day of the incident, Velaidum and Kelly were preparing their dogs for a walk. Upon returning home, they found a light gray powder and star-shaped black stones on the path. The impact had left a nearly one-inch indentation in a brick. Initially, the owners thought something might have fallen from their roof, but after Kelly's parents mentioned hearing a loud noise, they decided to check the doorbell recording. That's when they realized a rock had fallen from the sky.
After contacting the University of Alberta's Meteorite Reporting System, the collection curator examined photographs of the debris. He indicated that most meteorite reports tend to be erroneous, although he was surprised to identify a fusion crust on the material, indicating it was indeed a meteorite. To confirm, it needed to be taken to a laboratory. The couple made an effort to collect as many remnants as possible, even using a magnet and, at one point, a vacuum cleaner to recover more debris.
Herd, the curator, planned to visit Prince Edward Island soon after the incident and took the opportunity to assess the situation. He classified the meteorite as an ordinary chondrite, the most common type of rocky meteorite. Meteorites are classified as "falls" and "finds"; falls are those that have been observed at the moment of impact. While it is uncertain if this meteorite is the first to be captured with audio and video, it is considered valuable from a research perspective.
The video recording not only documents the exact moment of the meteorite's arrival but may also help trace its orbit. Additionally, the video frames can be analyzed to gather information about the angle and speed of the fall. The experience has transformed Velaidum, who reflected on the fragility of human life in contrast to the vastness of the universe, leaving a lasting impact on his perspective.
