English (UK)
Last February 24 2016, at 2:32 Spanish local time (1:32 UT), an impressive fireball crossed center Andalucía (South Spain) skies. The object was registered from one of the Calar Alto Observatory surveillance cameras (the one pointing to West), as well as from the fireball detection stations operated at La Hita (Toledo), El Arenosillo (Huelva) and Sevilla Observatories.
Following the preliminary analysis done by Professor José María Madiedo (University of Huelva), the project PI, the event was due to the impact of a meteoroid against the Earth’s atmosphere at a speed of about 60.000 km/h. The fireball which crossed from South to North the skies of Cordoba province (South Spain), could also be seen by several people from different parts of the geography of Andalucía.
The analysis is not finished yet. A more detailed analysis of this event will determine whether this fireball keeps connection with any of the other meteoroids that crossed Iberian Peninsula in recent days. We’ll update this page accordingly if more information of the fireball can be determined.
Update February 27th. Last data analyzed by Professor J. M. Madiedo (University of Huelva), revealed that this fireball probably has produced meteorites,
Below is the impressive video recorded with one of Calar Alto Observatory surveillance webcams.
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.