Mysterious Peruvian Meteor Disease Solved

Technician writes "The meteor that crashed in Peru caused a mystery illnesses. The cause of the illness has been found. The meteor was not toxic. The ground water it contacted contains arsenic. The resulting steam cloud is what caused the mystery illness. "The meteorite created the gases when the object's hot surface met an underground water supply tainted with arsenic, the scientists said." There is a very good photo of the impact crater in the article. The rim of the crater is lined with people for a size comparison."

Comments

Aha

[Anonymous Coward]

It's funny because it's poisonous.

Re:Aha

[fbjon]

Yeah, I mean why don't they write about the meteorite instead of saying things like

The meteorite's impact sent debris flying up to 820 feet (250 meters) away or

The samples also had a significant amount of magnetic material "characteristic of meteorites," she said. or

"It's a rocky fragment," Machare said, "and rocks that fall from the sky can only be meteorites."

Re:Aha

[Hognoxious]

rocks that fall from the sky can only be meteorites

O RLY?

Don't Believe it..

[lucabrasi999]

Bah! That's what they want you to believe. I prefer to believe my own complex conspiracy theory involving secret government projects, space aliens, and duct tape.

Re:Don't Believe it..

[MyLongNickName]

Noob. Any conspiracy theory has to involve black planes.

Re:Don't Believe it..

[morgan_greywolf]

Bah! That's what they want you to believe. I prefer to believe my own complex conspiracy theory involving secret government projects, space aliens, and duct tape. Mine involves those, plus a copy of Catcher in the Rye, several men known by three names, a few guys wearing all black, some black helicopters, Area 51, and a can of cheeze whiz.

I'm not sure what the cheese whiz is for.

Re:Don't Believe it..

[Red Flayer]

I'm not sure what the cheese whiz is for.

Interrogations. Just the sight of a can of cheez whiz in the hands of a skilled interrogator has caused many fine men to crumble.

Re:Don't Believe it..

[AdamThor]

Zombies, people! Zombies!

Be on the lookout for other stories from South America:
- Cannibalism
- Murder Spree
- Violent Insanity
- People missing
- Further mystery disease
- Riot / uprising
- corpse mutilation

Organize before they rise!

Re:Don't Believe it..

[ashitaka]

I'm not sure what the cheese whiz is for.

Has to do with the watermelon.

I'll tell you later.

And it would have gotten away with it too...

[pieaholicx]

If it weren't for those meddling scientists!

How embarrassing!

[Fear the Clam]

The whole world ooohs and ahhhs at your mysterious meteor and the local chamber of commerce is rubbing its hands together, thinking about how many tourists will be dropping by to see the Terror From the Skies and then--oh, no, never mind. Sorry, folks, nothing to see here. We're just slobs and our place is a toxic shithole. Sorry about that. Just call us Newark south.

Pout

[phoenixwade]

A mundane reason for the illnesses.

I guess I'll go put my tin-foil hat away..... Oh! Wait! How about if I claim a government cover-up? Where are the men in black?

Re:Pout

[Spy der Mann]

How about if I claim a government cover-up? Where are the men in black?

Take a look at this light, please. *FLASH*

drat, a commonsense explanation

[jollyreaper]

I read on Pravda that the "meteor" was actually a downed US spy sat and it was done as a blue-on-blue false flag strike to be blamed on certain foreign powers as a prelude to starting a new war. The locals were suffering from radiation sickness from the plutonium core on the sat! And now you're saying there's a reasonable explanation? Feh. Pravda is my new Weekly World News, I just wish they'd pick up the Bat Boy features. I've been wondering what that little scamp is up to.

Re:Who are these scientists?

[Rob T Firefly]

I'll just bet the water it contacted was, upon further study, found to be wet.

Re:far far away

[CptNerd]

Have we learned nothing from 1950's horror movies?

Or even 1970's science fiction?

If it's glowing, and just came from outer space, RUN. AWAY.

Do not taunt Happy Fun Ball.

Steam...from a cold meteor?

[SuperBanana]

So how does a meteor, which is usually cold if not frozen, generate a steam cloud large enough to make a whole lot people sick? Numerous websites cover this if you google "meteor hot or cold." Even NASA's website says that the meteor's outer surface usually heats up and ablates, leaving the core still very cold.

There's an alternate theory going around- a Peruvian SCUD missile gone awry, and the fuel (Inhibited Fuming Red Nitric Acid) is what made people sick.

Its the return of the...

[l0cust]

You guys are so dense. Arsenic this and UFO that. Pffft! Just look at the pictrue in that article. Doesn't it remind of another very VERY famous picture of similar nature? Goddammit! Do you want me to actually explain it? On /.? Really? The link under that pic says "Enlarge this" How is that for a hint?

HE IS BACK!!!