Very bright fireball over Toledo, Spain
Image credit: Meteoroides/SMART project
A very bright fireball was spotted over Toledo, central Spain at 02:26 UTC on February 11, 2022.
The event was generated by a rock (a meteoroid) from a comet that hit the atmosphere at about 87 000 km/h (54 000 mph).
The fireball began at an altitude of about 115 km (71 miles) over the province of Toledo, moved southwest, and ended at a height of around 45 km (28 miles) over the province of Ciudad Real.
This bright meteor was recorded in the framework of the SMART project, operated by the Southwestern Europe Meteor Network (SWEMN) from the meteor-observing stations located at Calar Alto, Sierra Nevada, La Sagra (Granada), Huelva, and La Hita (Toledo). It was also observed at ESA Cebreros Ground Station, ESA/AMS81, AllSky7 Fireball Network.
The event has been analyzed by the principal investigator of the SMART project: Dr. Jose M. Madiedo, from the Institute of Astrophysics of Andalusia (IAA-CSIC).
I'm a dedicated researcher, journalist, and editor at The Watchers. With over 20 years of experience in the media industry, I specialize in hard science news, focusing on extreme weather, seismic and volcanic activity, space weather, and astronomy, including near-Earth objects and planetary defense strategies. You can reach me at teo /at/ watchers.news.
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