Fireball above Cartagena (southeast Spain) on March 24th 2023


pathAt 23h41 UT of last March 24th 2023, a bright fireball crossed Murcia province, just above Cartagena city.

This phenomenon was registered with the SMART Project’s detector operated at Calar Alto (Almería), La Hita (Toledo), Sierra Nevada (Granada), La Sagra (Granada) and Seville observatories.

Two of the external cameras of Calar Alto Observatory in Almería, could also follow the event.

The preliminary analysis was carried out by Professor José María Madiedo (Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía IAA-CSIC), PI of SMART Project. His conclusions are:

  • Type of event: Cometary
  • Initial speed: 60.000 km/h
  • Initial altitude: 99 km
  • Final altitude: 72 km

Below are the videos registered with the two external cameras operated at Calar Alto Observatory in Almería.

 


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 (IAA) to track that kind of objects. Specifically, Calar Alto (CAHA) station and the one at Sierra Nevada (IAA-CSIC) constitute a collaboration agreement between the IAA researcher José María Madiedo and both institutions.