Case file · Cosmic event
Carancas meteorite and the 'mystery illness'
On 15 September 2007 a stony meteorite gouged a 13 m crater near Carancas by Lake Titicaca; villagers who visited it reported headaches and nausea, sparking rumours of poison gas.
2007 CE · -16.66, -69.04 · status: explained
The account
It was the first witnessed crater-forming fall of a chondrite. The crater filled with groundwater rich in arsenic compounds.
The sceptical view
Investigators attributed the illness to vapours from the heated groundwater, fear and suggestion; no radiation was found.