Mysterious slime rained down on American city in 1994

Dense spheres rained down on Oakville in the summer of 1994, leaving scientists with no conclusive analysis.

Mud rain fell on Oakville six times in 1994. Photo: Wikimedia — Mud rain fell on Oakville six times in 1994. Photo: *Wikimedia*

On August 7, 1994, slime rain first appeared in Oakville, according to IFL Science . They fell from the sky as slime particles smaller than grains of rice, but with heavy rainfall, they became visible all over the ground and rooftops, including the home of local resident Sunny Barclift. On August 19 of the same year, The Lewiston Tribune reported that slime rain continued to fall for the second time in a fortnight.

A hospital examined the mucus under a microscope and concluded that it contained human white blood cells, sparking speculation that it was waste from an airplane toilet, but a spokesman for the US Federal Aviation Administration denied this theory because toilet waste is often dyed blue, hence the nickname "blue ice".

The second, more interesting theory explains the slime as exploding jellyfish. The 354th Fighter Squadron dropped several bombs in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Washington at the time. The bombs landed on a colony of jellyfish, which may have been the source of the Oakville slime rain.

Paul Johnson, professor emeritus of biology at the University of North Georgia, said it was possible that jellyfish debris was shot into the atmosphere and collected during the storm. Raining animals is nothing new, but with six instances of slime raining down on the city, it’s hard to imagine jellyfish debris floating in the air for so long.

On August 20, 1994, the Washington State Department of Ecology conducted an analysis of the mucus. Their scientist, Mike Osweiler, examined the Oakville mucus granules and found several cells of varying sizes. This result seemed to disprove the previous hypothesis of platelets, as the cells lacked nuclei. As multicellular organisms belonging to the phylum Stingray, jellyfish are made of eukaryotic cells like many other animals, including a nucleus and membrane-bound organelles.

The life forms without nuclei constitute prokaryotes, which are commonly found in bacteria and archaea. Microbiologist Mike McDowell of the Washington State Department of Public Health (WSPHD) said he and his colleagues could not see any structures through microscopic observation. They placed the mucus in a variety of microbiological substrates and tried to isolate the bacteria. The WSPHD report noted the presence of two bacteria, Pseudomonas fluorescens and Enterobacter cloacae, both of which live in the digestive tract of humans and other mammals. They are also found in the environment at garbage dumps and can travel in water and aerosols.

Several Oakville residents fell ill with flu-like symptoms after coming into contact with the mucus, including Barclift’s mother. However, researchers don’t know if this was a direct result of the mucus rain. Barclift and a friend also experienced vomiting and fatigue after collecting and touching the mysterious mucus. At the time, she thought the symptoms could have been a coincidence. However, Barclift believes the Oakville mucus rain is an unusual phenomenon.

An Khang (According to IFL Science )

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