Proceedings of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. [Sess. 
X. — Note on the Strathmore Meteorite of 1917 Dec. 3. 
By Professor R. A. Sampson. 
(MS. received January 14, 1918. Read January 14, 1918.) 
On Monday, 3rd December 1917, in brilliant weather, a meteor was 
observed by many persons in S.E. Scotland. Its luminous course lasted 
apparently for some seconds. It is described as extremely bright, like 
limelight, or a length of wire at white heat ; it left a trail, part of which 
became detached but continued to follow it, and it was accompanied by 
two thin streamers. It was seen from Hexham, Northumberland, 120 miles 
from where it fell, low down on the horizon. From Edinburgh several 
observers noticed it at an angle which may be put at 45° from the horizon 
and a bearing somewhat to the east of north. From Dunfermline it 
was reported at “no great altitude” and travelling in a line inclined 
about 15' to the horizon. From Callander an elevation of 45° is reported. 
From Collessie, near Cupar, Fife, its explosion was judged to be nearly 
overhead. As Callander and Edinburgh are separated by about 45 miles, 
if we accept the elevations given, the meteorite must have been visible 
at not less than 40 miles above the earths surface, and this would place 
it 20° high as seen from Hexham, which could hardly be described as 
“low down on the horizon.” I am inclined to think that the Callander 
elevation is overestimated, and should be more nearly 30°, and would 
conclude that the meteor at the time of its explosion was 20 miles overhead 
at Collessie, being then horizontally 20 miles from Edinburgh and from 
Coupar- Angus, and at an elevation of 9° from Hexham. The meteorite 
burst in a succession of explosions in the course of a few seconds ; most 
observers agree that there were five explosions. This noise and the roar 
of its passage through the air drew the attention of many to it, who did not 
see the light. The roar was generally ascribed to an aeroplane, and the 
explosions to bombs. At an interval of some minutes, so it appears from 
several reports, after the explosions, pieces fell in Strathmore, and three 
were recovered in Perthshire, at places lying 4 miles apart and almost 
in a direct line with one another. A fourth was found at Corston in 
Forfarshire, half a mile to the east of the same line, and extending it about 
a mile to the south. The first to be noticed, weighing about 2J lbs., 
penetrated the slates and lining of a roof at Keith ick South Lodge (2 miles 
S. W. from Coupar- Angus), but did not break the plaster of the ceiling below, 
