34 Years Ago, Teen’s Car Got Smashed by Something Hot to the Touch That Smelled Like Sulfur. It Turned Out Meteorite Was to Blame

Michelle Knapp, 18, was watching television at home when she was startled by a deafening bang just outside

NEED TO KNOW

• A meteorite plummeted through a car in Peekskill exactly 34 years ago
• Michelle Knapp, 18, who was watching television at home, was startled by a deafening bang just outside
• In 2021, a slice of the meteorite sold at Christie’s for $4,375

Thirty four years ago, on Oct. 9, 1992, a meteorite rocked Westchester, New York.

That night, Michelle Knapp, 18, was watching TV at her Peekskill home when her viewing was interrupted by a deafening bang, which seemed to be coming from her driveway, according to the American Museum of Natural History.

Outside, the 18-year-old discovered a something had torn through her 1980 Chevy Malibu.

Local police who were called to the scene at first speculated that “criminal mischief by a very strong male,” was to blame, according to the Peekskill Herald.

Then again, whatever had damaged the car was warm to the touch, smelled like sulfur and weighed about 28 lbs.

The next day, a Natural History Museum curator confirmed that the rock was actually a meteor.

Richard Huff, a photographer for the Peekskill Herald at the time, told the outlet years later that it was hard to comprehend at the time.

“I remember thinking at the time this kind of stuff doesn’t happen here. We’ve all seen falling stars, but most people never see where they fall. This was a big deal,” Huff said. “One thing for sure, the meteorite brought Peekskill a new level of fame and continues to be talked about today where it happened and around the world.”

The meteor didn’t just remain a talking point — it became a selling point, at least for some lucky collectors.

In 2021, a “partial slice” of the “blazing fragmenting intruder” of a meteorite went up for auction at Christie’s, and on Feb. 23, it sold for $4,375.

“Specimens of the Peekskill meteorite are difficult to obtain,” the lot’s description read. “A portion of the meteorite from which this slice was removed, along with the car it hit, have been on an international museum tour for years.”

Another hot item of interest was Knapp’s car, which the teen had purchased for just $400 shortly before the collission.

Afterwards, however, the car had become a part of captivating scientific history — as Christie’s notes, it’s not everyday that a meteor hits and dents a car — and it sold for $10,000.

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Since then, the car has also been on display at a number of museums around the world.