Bright fireball over Popocatepetl volcano, Mexico

A bright fireball was recorded streaking through the night sky over Popocatepetl volcano, Mexico at 02:18 UTC on February 19, 2020 (20:18 LT on February 18). The event was recorded by several webcams.

At this time, there are no eyewitness reports submitted to the AMS or IMO.

In 24 hours to 17:00 UTC on February 18, the monitoring systems of the Popocatépetl volcano registered 234 exhalations, 352 minutes of tremor and 9 minor explosions accompanied by the emission of gases and light amounts of ash that dispersed to the northwest, in addition to emission of fragments in some of them. 

With the support of the National Guard, a reconnaissance overflight was made to the crater of the Popocatépetl volcano yesterday.

During this overflight, specialists from the National Center for Disaster Prevention (CENAPRED) of the National Civil Protection Coordination and researchers from the Geophysics Institute of UNAM, were able to observe the morphological conditions of the volcano.

The internal crater maintains a diameter of 350 m (1 150 feet) and its approximate depth is 100 to 150 m (330 – 492 feet), which is covered by tephra. In general, no substantial changes have been observed.

Featured image: Bright fireball over Popocatepetl volcano, Mexico on February 18, 2020. Credit: CENAPRED