SPACE ROCK FLOP

Irish TV Station’s ‘Meteor Mystery’ Unravels in Spectacular Fashion

After reporting that a crater on a beach might be proof of a “once-in-a-lifetime cosmic event,” the station was forced to admit it was just a hole two guys dug.

A TV station in Ireland got residents of a community in Dublin all excited with a report claiming a “mysterious crater” at their local beach might be proof of a “once-in-a-lifetime cosmic event.” But less than a day after the first report aired touting a possible meteor strike, they were forced to admit it was actually just a hole dug up by two random guys. Virgin Media’s original segment featured an interview with a “local astrophysics enthusiast” who said he’d been watching NASA documentaries and claimed the hole on Portmarnock beach was the “impact site” of a meteor. Holding up a rock found inside the hole, he said a “scorch mark” on it was proof of its otherworldly origins and that it should be tested by experts. Other residents were shown excitedly gathering around the hole, gushing about how “spectacular” it was to see the site of a meteor strike. But then came the update aired by the TV station the next day, which announced that “the mystery of the hole on the North Dublin beach has apparently been solved” after “footage emerged” of two men digging the hole. The astronomy enthusiast at the center of the original segment has said he is “disappointed” but still wants the rock analyzed.

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