Local residents in Madhubani, India were shocked to see an impact site in a paddy field. Upon investigation, local residents recovered a meteor-like rock that weighed nearly 15 kilograms. Authorities soon rushed to the site and they took the rocky body to the Bihar Museum.
"The farmers were working in the paddy field when this heavy rock fell from the sky with a very loud noise. We saw it has very strong magnetic properties, some shine and weighs around 15 kg," said Shirsat Kapil Ashok Madhubani District Magistrate.
As per reports, authorities are planning to transfer the rock to the Sri Krishna Science Center in Bihar to confirm that it is actually a meteorite that landed in the Bihar paddy field. The Bihar Chief Minister's office, in a statement, also revealed that the alleged meteor discovered from the paddy field has magnetic properties.
This is not the first time that a meteorite is creating news headlines in India. In 2016, the Tamil Nadu state authorities revealed that a meteorite had killed a bus driver. Even though Indian scientists were convinced about the explanation put forward by state authorities, NASA claimed that the object that caused this tragedy might not be a meteorite from deep space.
One of the most dreaded meteorites hit in recent history happened in Russia on February 15, 2013. This incident known as the Chelyabinsk meteor explosion injured more than 1,000 people living in the area. It should be noted this meteor was undetected until the moment it entered the atmosphere as its radiant was very close to the sun.
In the meantime, NASA, the United States space agency is now busy developing a planetary defense weapon that will protect the planet from rogue space bodies like meteors and asteroids. Using this weapon, NASA aims to deflect the original trajectory of these space bodies, so that they will continue its journey through deep space without posing a threat to human existence.