Scientists confirm meteorite fall in Beed village

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: Nearly 48 hours after two stones fell from the sky in the Khalwat-Nimgaon village of Beed's Wadwani taluka, scientists described the objects as meteorites on Wednesday.

According to residents, two stones fell from the sky with a deafening at the remote village around 2pm on March 3. One of the stones even pierced the tin-shed roof of a farmer's home.

The news of stones falling from the sky spread like wildfire, sparking panic among villagers. Wadwani tehsildar Vaibhav Mahindrakar said the stones were recovered from two spots a few metres apart.

"According to residents, the stones felt cool when touched. We carried out panchanamas and handed over the stones to the district administration," he said, adding that villagers have been requested not to panic.

Beed district administration invited scientists from the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar-based MGM APJ Abdul Kalam Astro and Space Science Centre to assess the stones. Centre's director Dr Shriniwas Aundhkar, on Wednesday, said the stones recovered appear to be meteorites. "Considering the gravity, magnetic properties, and other parameters, the objects seem to be small parts of an asteroid that entered the Earth's atmosphere. We are further studying these objects," he told TOI.

Aundhkar said the chances of meteorites hitting the Earth's surface are low. "We often see meteors in the sky. These are particles from a comet or an asteroid known as meteoroids that enter Earth's atmosphere and instantly get vaporised. A meteoroid that manages to pass through the atmosphere and fall upon Earth's surface is called a meteorite," he said.

According to experts, it was the first known incident in Marathwada of a meteorite hitting the Earth's surface in many years.