Bright fireball above Mediterranean Sea on September 24th 2019


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Last September 24th night at 22:59 UT (00:59 of September 25th local time), a bright fireball flew above Mediterranean Sea just in front of Almería coasts (southeast Spain)

pathThis event could be registered with the SMART Project's detectors operated at Calar Alto (Almería), La Hita (Toledo), La Sagra (Granada), OSN (Granada) and Sevilla observatories.

The object could also be followed with the southeast sky-cam at Calar Alto Observatory in Almería.

The preliminary analysis carried out by Professor José María Madiedo (University of Huelva), SMART Project's PI, determines that this fireball was caused due to the impact against our atmosphere of a rock detached from a comet.

The luminous part of the event started at an altitude of about 108 km above the Mediterranean Sea, finishing at an altitude of 60 km above the sea. Its speed was about 140.000 km/h

This phenomena occurred totally above Mediterranean Sea.

Below is the video that the southeast sky-camera at Calar Alto (Almería) could register.


Calar Alto (CAHA) fireball detection station, together with the one at the Observatory of Sierra Nevada (IAA-CSIC) and others placed at different locations in Spain, are part of the S.M.A.R.T. project led by Professor José María Madiedo (University of Huelva) to track that kind of objects. Specifically, Calar Alto (CAHA) station and the one at Sierra Nevada (IAA-CSIC) constitute a collaboration agreement between Professor Madiedo and both institutions.