June 13, 2004

Photo: The rock that fell to Earth, and into an Auckland living room.

A grapefruit-sized meteorite has crashed through the roof of a house in Auckland, New Zealand.

The rock hit a sofa and then bounced back up to the ceiling, before coming to rest under a computer.

"There was just a huge explosion and we looked around and there was just dust everywhere," home-owner Brenda Archer told New Zealand television.

The meteorite was probably travelling at about 500 km/h (300 mph) when it hit the house, experts say.

"I'm just glad no one was sitting on the couch because they would have got absolutely crowned," Mrs Archer said.

A beauty

When the meteorite entered the atmosphere, it is estimated to have been the size of a basketball, travelling at about 50,000 km/h (30,000 mph).

Photo: Through the roof - the Archers can charge a lot for the fallen rock

Collectors worldwide are expected to offer the Archers cash for the 1.3-kg (3lb) rock.

Meteorite expert Joel Schiff from Auckland University said it could be worth more than US$5,000.

"Falling through a roof is really an exceptional event and this is a beautiful, large specimen," he said.

The overwhelming majority of meteorites entering the atmosphere burn up before reaching the Earth.

The chances a house being hit by a space rock have been measured in the billions-to-one - although two such incidents were reported last September - in New Orleans in the US and in India's Orissa state.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/3802865.stm