🧵1/
One night in 1833, Americans thought Judgment Day had come.
The sky lit up with 72,000 “stars” an hour—falling fast, silently, relentlessly.
It changed the way we see the universe.
This is the story of that night.
One night in 1833, Americans thought Judgment Day had come.
The sky lit up with 72,000 “stars” an hour—falling fast, silently, relentlessly.
It changed the way we see the universe.
This is the story of that night.
2/
It began after midnight, Nov 13th.
Over North America, thousands woke to a sky unlike anything they’d seen.
The stars weren’t twinkling—they were falling, in great arcs and bursts.
A silent, silver storm of fire.
It began after midnight, Nov 13th.
Over North America, thousands woke to a sky unlike anything they’d seen.
The stars weren’t twinkling—they were falling, in great arcs and bursts.
A silent, silver storm of fire.
3/
Imagine: it’s 1833. No light pollution. No Twitter.
You step outside and see the heavens collapsing.
Would you be terrified—or mesmerized?
Imagine: it’s 1833. No light pollution. No Twitter.
You step outside and see the heavens collapsing.
Would you be terrified—or mesmerized?
4/
“One of the most sublime spectacles ever witnessed... The very zenith of heaven was blazing with these shooting stars.”
— Harper’s Weekly, 1833
“One of the most sublime spectacles ever witnessed... The very zenith of heaven was blazing with these shooting stars.”
— Harper’s Weekly, 1833
5/
Observers counted up to 14 meteors per second in places like Alabama and New York.
That’s over 50,000 an hour.
Some reports from the Plains suggested 100,000.
Church bells rang. Families prayed. Farmhands ran to wake their families.
Observers counted up to 14 meteors per second in places like Alabama and New York.
That’s over 50,000 an hour.
Some reports from the Plains suggested 100,000.
Church bells rang. Families prayed. Farmhands ran to wake their families.
6/
In towns across the South, people feared the end of the world.
Preachers called for repentance.
Cattle stampeded.
One man wrote: “The stars were literally falling like snowflakes.”
In towns across the South, people feared the end of the world.
Preachers called for repentance.
Cattle stampeded.
One man wrote: “The stars were literally falling like snowflakes.”
7/
But in New Haven, Connecticut, a Yale professor named Denison Olmsted saw something else.
He began collecting letters—3,000 of them.
From farmers, sailors, traders, enslaved men, missionaries.
But in New Haven, Connecticut, a Yale professor named Denison Olmsted saw something else.
He began collecting letters—3,000 of them.
From farmers, sailors, traders, enslaved men, missionaries.
8/
From that mass of observations, he proved something revolutionary:
The “falling stars” came not from Earth… but from space.
It was one of the first great acts of crowdsourced science.
From that mass of observations, he proved something revolutionary:
The “falling stars” came not from Earth… but from space.
It was one of the first great acts of crowdsourced science.
“As the cause of Falling Stars is not understood…,
the subscriber therefore requests to be informed of any particulars—
the time first observed, the position of the radiant point, and any other facts.”
— Prof. Denison Olmsted’s open letter, New Haven Daily Herald, 14 Nov 1833
the subscriber therefore requests to be informed of any particulars—
the time first observed, the position of the radiant point, and any other facts.”
— Prof. Denison Olmsted’s open letter, New Haven Daily Herald, 14 Nov 1833
9/
A young Abraham Lincoln witnessed the storm while sleeping outdoors as a 24-year-old.
A young Abraham Lincoln witnessed the storm while sleeping outdoors as a 24-year-old.
Frederick Douglass later wrote that many enslaved saw it as a sign of divine change.
“The day of judgment had surely come.”
“The day of judgment had surely come.”
10/
The 1833 Leonid meteor storm helped birth American astronomy, religious awakenings, and abolitionist hopes.
Ever seen a sky that made you question reality?
👇Tell us your story.
The 1833 Leonid meteor storm helped birth American astronomy, religious awakenings, and abolitionist hopes.
Ever seen a sky that made you question reality?
👇Tell us your story.
I hope you've found this thread helpful.
Follow me @brazenFM for more.
Like/Repost the quote below if you can:
Follow me @brazenFM for more.
Like/Repost the quote below if you can:
https://twitter.com/1323994537614843906/status/1943290139775766619
More details on the story here efakhuda.manus.space
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