Hadrien Devillepoix

Sometimes a fiery streak crosses the night sky. It's a piece of rock from space burning up in the air, and the color of the flash can tell you what elements it contained. Astronomers pointed sensitive cameras at such flashes and, among 180 images, found two rocks that stand out from the majority of shooting stars.

Perth residents know: when the daytime heat becomes unbearable, relief arrives from the ocean — a fresh breeze affectionately called the Freo Doctor. The same wind, only on a global scale, decides the fate of cosmic visitors plunging into the atmosphere. A meteorite fall is a two-act spectacle.

A stone thrown into water quickly loses speed. A meteor entering the atmosphere should behave the same way: air slows it down, and friction burns up its material. But cameras of the Global Fireball Observatory network have captured hundreds of bright fireballs over ten years that streak across the sky with almost no deceleration.