<S4 
The American Geologist. 
February, 18% 
miles west of Knyahinya, the meteor presented the appearance 
<of a burning birch rod. The handle, which was directed fore¬ 
most, was deep red; and the meteor shot over Saros and 
Zemplin to a point due east, where it burst, scattering its 
fragments in all directions and houses shook with the explo¬ 
sion.” 
The bursting of the Quenggouk meteorite, Dec. 27, 1857, 
was observed by Lieut. Aylesbury and others, and the former 
has left a sketch showing its appearance at the moment of ex¬ 
plosion. Haidinger,* after careful study of all the observa¬ 
tions, states that “there can remain no doubt that the meteor¬ 
ite, entering our atmosphere as a complete stone, was broken 
into a number of pieces at a great height.” 
Other instances of this kind might be cited, but those which 
have been given ought to be sufficient to prove that meteorites 
have been seen to “explode” during their passage to the earth. 
I can find, moreover, no other adequate explanation for the 
differences in crust observable on different parts of single 
meteoric stones than to suppose that, by the breaking up of 
the mass during its passage through the atmosphere, some 
surfaces were exposed for a much shorter time than others to 
the fusing forces. As stated in the Handbook, the stones of 
the Butsura fall furnish the most remarkable instance of this, 
for their surfaces show three different degrees of fusion, appar¬ 
ently corresponding to three different disruptions indicated 
by the three reports heard at the time of the fall. But the 
stones of almost every meteoric shower show, in connection 
with thoroughly fused surfaces, others which are barely 
smoked and indicate very brief exposure. Haidinger. I am 
aware, sought to explain these surfaces by supposing them to 
be the result of mutual collision of fragments during a fall; 
but the extent of the surfaces and the absence of any eviden¬ 
ces of abrasion upon them seem to me to contradict such a 
theory. 
It may of course be incorrect to assert that the sounds like 
an explosion, which are heard, are concomitant with, or are 
the result of the bursting of the meteorite, yet the inference 
is a natural and usual one. 
*Sitz. Akad. Wien., Bd. 44, S. 637. 
