File pic Photo: Fireballs Aotearoa
A fireball hurtled towards the ground in Hawke's Bay last Wednesday night, and based on eyewitnesses and camera footage, may have caused a meteorite to land somewhere within a 600 hectare patch of private land.
Now the hunt could be on - if it's located, it will be the eleventh one found in New Zealand.
Executive member of Fireballs Aotearoa Steve Wyn-Harris who was among those who found a meteorite at Tekapo a year ago said the latest one landed at 10.49pm or 10.50pm on 12 March.
Unfortunately, at the time the area was cloudy and most of the cameras the network has did not catch it, he told Afternoons with Jesse Mulligan.
Steve Wyn-Harris with the Tekapo meteorite. Photo: Supplied / Steve Wyn-Harris
Four cameras were more helpful although he stressed his group tried to keep the location secret so as not to encourage fortune-seekers.
He appealed for those with CCTV cameras to review footage in case it might shed further light on the precise location.
"These things are only in the sky for five to six seconds."
At the time a lot of Hawke's Bay residents heard the sonic boom, he said.
He had been to the private land where it might be. It was sheep and beef hill country and the landowners were supportive of a search.
However, unlike some drought-hit areas of the North Island, Hawke's Bay had had rainfall so a small meteorite (weighing about 200 grams to 300 grams) would be hard to spot in the grass.
"Also confounding it is sheep's poos and turkey poos look a little bit like a meteorite."
Wyn-Harris said he must now decide whether to launch a search.
Although it was like looking for a needle in the haystack he had similar thoughts on the Tekapo search and the meteorite had been spotted within 45 minutes.
Science could learn a lot from any meteorites that were found, he said.
"They've been out in space for four and a half billion years since the solar system came into being and they contain a lot of information from their early formation."
It would be analysed and then hopefully go into a museum for public display, although that was dependent on the landowners' permission.
If a search is to be mounted Wyn-Harris will put a post on the Fireballs Aotearoa Facebook page by the end of the week with details on how to join the search.
Searchers gather around the discovery at Tekapo. Photo: Supplied / Steve Wyn-Harris
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