1,100 injured as meteor explodes in Russia

Windows break; panic spreads

MOSCOW (AP) – With a blinding flash and a booming shock wave, a meteor blazed across the western Siberian sky Friday and exploded with the force of 20 atomic bombs, injuring more than 1,000 people as it blasted out windows and spread panic in a city of 1 million.

While NASA estimated the meteor was only about the size of a bus and weighed an estimated 7,000 tons, the fireball it produced was dramatic. Video shot by startled residents of the city of Chelyabinsk showed its streaming contrails as it arced toward the horizon just after sunrise, looking like something from a world-ending science-fiction movie.

The largest recorded meteor strike in more than a century occurred hours before a 150-foot asteroid passed within about 17,000 miles of Earth. The European Space Agency said its experts had determined there was no connection between the asteroid and the Russian meteor – just cosmic coincidence.

Story Archived

Only the most recent 7 days of articles are available for free. For articles older than 7 days there is a small fee for retrieval from our archive. If you are a registered member of the site, the content is free just by signing in below.

Please sign in with your Comment Member ID and password.

Did you purchase access?

Member ID:
Password:
Forgot Your Password?
Register to comment.

Purchase Access
To allow for flexibility, we offer a variety of options for purchasing articles:
Purchase options


Having trouble?

If you have any technical difficulties, either with your username and password or with the payment options, please contact us by e-mail at archivedesk@shawmedia.com

Blogs

» Out Here
Out Here

Wise saw collapse in support

Last week, Sterling Alderwoman Amy Viering attended her last meeting as a city official. She gave the usual praise one hears at such departures. But one compliment stuck out. At the end of her speech, she turned to City Administrator Scott Shumard and said, "You're awesome."
» Out Here
Out Here

On pensions, Bivins and GOP far apart

Sen. Tim Bivins, R-Dixon, joined with many of his fellow Senate Republicans this week to reject a pension bill sponsored by Democratic Senate President John Cullerton of Chicago. The measure passed 40-16. Bivins had a different reason for his no vote.

Reader Poll

How concerned are you that the IRS targeted conservative political groups for additional and often burdensome scrutiny?

Very concerned
Somewhat concerned
Not very concerned
Not concerned at all