Crash at Greenhouse a Bolt From Heavens

EAST BERLIN — Pieces of sizzling meteorite crashed into a Potsdam greenhouse last week, but three East German women working nearby thought it was just a table of flowerpots collapsing, a newspaper said Thursday.

Geology Prof. Peter Bankwitz told the Berlin Zeitung that scientists recovered 16 large pieces and many small bits of meteorite.

“Shortly after 1 o’clock (on March 1), a hissing sound came from the cloudy sky. Just after that a window pane smashed, followed by a loud bang and then silence,” Potsdam garden center manager Erich Maetz reported.

“When it hit, three women gardeners were working in another greenhouse about 66 feet away. Their first thought after the bang was that a large table holding flower pots had collapsed,” he said.