Murchison and District Historical Society president Kay Ball said the bells of the town's Anglican and Uniting churches and the Murchison Primary School bell were rung at precisely 11.58 am — the exact time an interstellar meteorite exploded over the town, sending shards of the precious rock across a 35 km² area.
The explosion on September 28, 1969, put Murchison on the world map after scientists from Australia, NASA and across the globe descended on the small town to hunt for pieces of the meteorite, said to be about seven billion years old — older than the Earth.
Mrs Ball said town bells were rung 51 times to mark Monday's anniversary.
“Because of COVID-19 restrictions we couldn't hold an anniversary event as we normally do every year, so we thought this is a way to mark the event which everyone can hear,” Mrs Ball said.
Monday's bell-ringing also coincides with the news that last year's three-day celebration marking the 50th anniversary of the meteorite shower, Rock on Murchison, had been shortlisted for the prestigious Victorian Premier's History Award and Victorian Community History Awards.
Mrs Ball said people had already asked if the event, organised by a small committee of supporters, would be on again this year.
“That was like asking a newly-delivered mother who has just ended an exhaustive labour when she would be having another baby.
“We were a bit exhausted ourselves even though the outcome was really wonderful and we successfully delivered a great program,” Mrs Ball said.
She said there were 176 entries across nine categories for the awards. The Murchison meteorite festival has been listed in the Collaborative Community History category and is one of 16 projects on the short list.
“We are looking forward with excitement to the final announcements,” Mrs Ball said.
She said an announcement was expected towards the end of October.
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