What on Earth could have created a hole like this in the roof of a house in Cartersville, Georgia?

Why, nothing. Nothing on Earth, that is. Because here’s the culprit:

Yowza. That’s a stony meteorite, and in March 2009 it came screaming down out of the sky and punched that hole! The cube is one centimeter (about a half inch) on a side, and is used for scale. What a great specimen! And it weighs in at 294 grams — more than half a pound — so it’s hefty. It must’ve been moving at quite a clip when it smacked that house, probably a couple of hundred kilometers per hour.

And if you want to see it for yourself, and live near Atlanta, now’s your chance: The Tellus Science Museum will have the rock on display — together with the roof and ceiling under it that get whacked — starting tonight at 6:00 p.m. as part of their Earth Day event.

I wonder if it’ll still be on display when Dragon*Con rolls around…

And if you’re wondering about the post title, then this might help. Given the museum’s location, it seemed appropriate.