meteorite or a ufo? [yoda translation]

this was taken from www.km.ru [www.km.ru...] website and translated to english from russian [translation2.paralink.com...]



In night with 24 for September, 25 the eyewitnesses living in area of the river Vitim, saw the huge heavenly body flying c in the high speed to the Earth. Dazzling flash has lit up a taiga and explosion of such force has then followed, that the blast wave has beaten out glasses in the villages located in tens kilometers from seat of falling of UFO.


In spite of the fact that there was night, clouds have lit up with a daylight. Eyewitnesses speak, that at the sky was to look painful. There was a strongest explosion. Where exactly the heavenly body has fallen off, because of low overcast to make out it was not possible. In opinion of the Russian scientists, Vitimsky - such scientists name a meteorite of the improbable size bolidami. The American satellites of photoelectronic investigation have reacted to explosion from falling off bolida. They have fixed provisional coordinates of seat of falling and capacity of explosion - not less than 200 kg in a trotyl equivalent. However, local residents at whom a wide experience of industrial explosive works, state, that with such capacity could blow up up to 2 tons of trotyl. As earthquake observed and for 50 kilometers from an epicentre, report Dni.ru Now from area of space accident, according to taiga hunters, all wood animals have disappeared. At the request of scientists - astronomers hunters should go the first to area of prospective falling Vitimskogo bolida.

But it happen not earlier, than the rivers that it was possible to reach seat will freeze. And astronomers already now prepare large-scale years(summer) expedition(dispatch).

[Edited on 1-12-2002 by $tranger]

I found several reports on this (in English... and lost the links). It's a bolide; a fireball and was widely seen and reported on. Though they're not sure if it was a meteor or a bit of space junk, the consensus is that it's a bolide.