Bright Alpha Capricornid fireball recorded over Northern Africa
Image credit: SMART Project
A very bright fireball was observed over Northern Africa at 21:05 UTC on July 8, 2016, and recorded by Spain's SMART Project meteor-observing network.
The data collected by SMART network have been analyzed by its principal investigator, Professor José María Madiedo. The analysis showed that the fireball was a fragment of comet 169P/NEAT, the source of Alpha Capricornid meteor shower, active from early July to mid-August.
It flew over Northern Africa at a speed of about 95 000 km/h (59 030 mph). The fireball started at an altitude of about 107 km (66 miles) over Morocco and moved northwestward, reaching a final height of 74 km (46 mph). "At that point, the rock was completely destroyed, with no fragments reaching the ground as meteorites," Madiedo concluded.
Video courtesy SMART Project
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