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Re: (meteorobs) "Electrophonic" Fireball sound nonsense
I don't think the sound is coming from the actual meteor particle, although
it may contribute. Some of this discussion focuses on the meteor's energy
somehow being relayed to the ground via RF or electrostatic means and
generating aural phenomenon. I believe it's an effect caused by sudden
changes in the earth's magnetic fields.
The ionization/plasma trail of a meteor is HUGE when compared to the actual
size of a meteoritic particle or it's energies of impact. Experiments have
been conducted to detect the deflection of the local magnetic lines of flux
when a meteor crosses and distorts them. This can be sensed from the ground
and may be the cause of the sounds people hear. I know we're again talking
about very weak phenomenon, but the sounds I've heard are weak and the
footprint of disturbed magnetic field would be immense. Also, as with most
natural phenomenon, it's fairly broadband, hence the crackly-noise nature of
the detected sound. It's hard to compare something like this to our more
coherent manmade RF signals in either energy or effect.
I've heard it twice, once as a child in Kentucky and more recently here in
Florida. A -8mag near-head-on at twilight on Thanksgiving about 15 years
ago. I actually heard it and saw the flashing light on the ground before I
saw it. I thought someone was arc welding something off in the distance as
it made the same kind of flashing blue light and sound. A soft sizzling,
crackling, sputtering sound. Like a fuse burning on a firecracker or a
sparkler burning. Although the sound was faint, I felt I could hear it echo
from the riverbanks behind me. This made me think the source was very large
and spread out over the whole area rather than a point source. More like a
very large loudspeaker turned down very low.
Another interesting phenomenon witnessed on the same event. The instant the
bright light went out and the sound stopped, it was replaced by the sound of
about 300 water-turkeys (comorants) taking flight off the power lines that
crossed the river right where I stood. These normally vocal birds all took
wing in the darkness and flew away without squalking or honking. They
roosted somewhere else that night because they didn't come back until next
evening.
I didn't know Aurora caused the same kind of sound. This kind of bouys up
my theory as Aurora are disturbances along the lines of force too.
Excellent thread. We need to get as much of this phenomenon on tape as
possible! (Assuming it is tapeable:-)
----- Original Message -----
From: "Chris Crawford" <chriscrawford@wavedot net>
To: <meteorobs@atmob.org>
Sent: Thursday, August 15, 2002 12:05 AM
Subject: Re: (meteorobs) "Electrophonic" Fireball sound nonsense
> I too was originally very skeptical of reports of sounds associated with
> meteors; I figured they were just mental effects -- you see something big,
> you expect to hear something, too, so your brain plugs in a sound.
However,
> I have seen enough plausible hypotheses that I am now unwilling to dismiss
> the possibility that there is a real physical phenomenon here.
>
> A big fireball enters the earth's atmosphere with 1 gram of mass and a
> velocity of 100 km/sec -- that yields 10**7 Joules of energy, which if
> released in one second, is a power of 10**7 watts.
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