First ever proof of meteorite killing a man uncovered in 1888 report to Ottoman sultan

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First ever proof a meteorite killed a human: Study uncovers 1888 report to Ottoman sultan of a meteor ‘falling like rain’ and killing a man and paralysing another

  •  Researchers at the Meteoritical Society found evidence of event in August 1888
  •  Documents kept by Turkish government archives describe a meteorite in Iraq
  •  It fell on village of Sulaymaniyah and killed one man and left another paralysed
  •  The event was reported to Abdul Hamid II, 34th sultan of the Ottoman Empire
  •  Odds of a meteorite killing a person are estimated at around one in 250,000

By Shari Miller For Mailonline

Published: | Updated:

The first ever proof of a person being struck and killed by a meteorite might just have been discovered.

Researchers at the Meteoritical Society have found evidence of a meteorite that killed one man and left another paralysed after it fell ‘like rain’ on a village in Sulaymaniyah, Iraq, formerly part of the Ottoman Empire, on August 22, 1888.

The event was recorded in three manuscripts kept in the Turkish government archives.

Researchers at the Meteoritical Society have found evidence of a meteorite that killed one man and left another paralysed after it fell on a village in Sulaymaniyah, Iraq, in August 1888

According to the documents, the event was reported to Abdul Hamid II, the 34th sultan of the Ottoman Empire, by the governor of Sulaymaniyah, prompting speculation that other similar incidents may have been recorded elsewhere in the archive. 

If true, the event would mark the earliest – and only credible proof – of a human being killed by a meteorite, something that scientists believe has a remarkably low chance of actually happening, with odds of around one in 250,000. 

‘Due to the fact that these documents are from official government sources and written by the local authorities… we do not have any suspicion on their reality,’ the researchers say in the academic paper describing their findings, The Independent reports. 

The meteorite landed in a village in Sulaymaniyah, Iraq, formerly part of the Ottoman Empire

The meteorite landed in a village in Sulaymaniyah, Iraq, formerly part of the Ottoman Empire

While meteorites have never been previously known to kill a person, the grapefruit-sized Sylacauga meteorite of November 1954 was recorded as the first to cause an injury. 

Ann Elizabeth Fowler Hodges was hit by the meteorite after it crashed through the roof of her farmhouse in Alabama, USA, while she slept.

Abdul Hamid II was informed about the meteorite, as evidenced by three documents found

Abdul Hamid II was informed about the meteorite, as evidenced by three documents found

The 34-year-old was badly bruised on one side of her body and the event attracted publicity around the world.

There is also a lesser-known claim of a Milanese friar being hit and killed by a meteorite in 1677. 

WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF SPACE ROCKS?

An asteroid is a large chunk of rock left over from collisions or the early solar system. Most are located between Mars and Jupiter in the Main Belt.

A comet is a rock covered in ice, methane and other compounds. Their orbits take them much further out of the solar system.

A meteor is what astronomers call a flash of light in the atmosphere when debris burns up.

This debris itself is known as a meteoroid. Most are so small they are vapourised in the atmosphere.

If any of this meteoroid makes it to Earth, it is called a meteorite.

Meteors, meteoroids and meteorites normally originate from asteroids and comets.

For example, if Earth passes through the tail of a comet, much of the debris burns up in the atmosphere, forming a meteor shower.