Meteor (schooner)

Meteor was a British merchant schooner which was destroyed in an explosion at the Grand Harbour, Malta in February 1834, with the loss of at least 11 lives.

During its final voyage, the Meteor was captained by master James William Waye and it carried gunpowder and general cargo from London to Malta.

The vessel encountered stormy weather and while en route, approximately 300–400 lb (140–180 kg) of gunpowder fell out of the barrels it was stored in.

At this point, a surveyor boarded the vessel and noticed that a fire had been lit in the ship's cookhouse while the spilled gunpowder had not yet been disposed of.

The Royal Navy ship of the line HMS St Vincent was reportedly severely damaged and was driven aground by the explosion, but was refloated on 21 February.

Merchant vessels in the Grand Harbour , as photographed by Calvert Jones in 1846
The HMS St Vincent which was reportedly damaged during the Meteor explosion, as painted by Charles W. Fothergill in 1898