Star Jelly
Star jelly in Scotland, 2008
Photo credit: Richard Webb
Cumbria, 2011; Washington, 1994; Massachusetts, 1983; Pennsylvania, 1950; in fact, virtually everywhere on the planet, nearly every year, going back as far as written histories go — star jelly has been reported falling from the skies. It's also been called star rot or fallen star in a variety of languages, and old texts have referred to it as "a fatty substance emitted from the Earth" and "a mucilaginous substance lying upon the earth". Star jelly is sticky, slimy goo, in puddles or patches, that's said to fall from the skies, usually associated with meteor storms or with shooting stars. It often doesn't last long, drying up and blowing away before it can be properly analyzed.
Star jelly's correlation with falling stars is not universally observed, but many meteors fall without being noticed. One fa... (Read the rest at http://skep.us/4299)