Several fireballs streak across the skies of the Iberian Peninsula between March and April

During the period between March 17 and April 14, several remarkable fireball events were observed over the central and southern regions of the Iberian Peninsula. Specifically, events were recorded on March 17, 19, and 26, as well as on April 7 and 14, at different times.

All these events were recorded by the detectors of the SMART Project operated from the observatories of Calar Alto (Almería), La Hita (Toledo), Sierra Nevada (Granada), La Sagra (Granada), Mazagón (Huelva), and Seville, as well as other collaborating stations located across different parts of Spain.

The external cameras of the Calar Alto Observatory in Almería also witnessed several of these objects, complementing the records obtained by the detection network.

According to the preliminary analysis carried out by Professor José María Madiedo (Institute of Astrophysics of Andalusia, IAA-CSIC), the following data have been obtained:

Fireball of March 17 at 21:54 UT Event type: asteroidal Initial velocity: 52,000 km/h Initial altitude: 83 km Final altitude: 33 km Stations: Calar Alto (Almería), Ayora (Valencia), La Hita (Toledo), Sierra Nevada, La Sagra (Granada), Seville, Olocau (Valencia), Faro de Cullera (Valencia), Otura (Granada) and Mazagón (Huelva)
Fireball of March 19 at 00:59 UT ** No data available for this event **
Fireball of March 19 at 04:46 UT Event type: cometary Initial velocity: 62,000 km/h Initial altitude: 87 km Final altitude: 65 km Stations: Calar Alto (Almería), La Hita (Toledo), Seville and Mazagón (Huelva)
Fireball of March 26 at 22:49 UT ** No data available for this event **
Fireball of April 14 at 01:24 UT Event type: cometary Initial velocity: 66,000 km/h Initial altitude: 99 km Final altitude: 60 km Stations: Calar Alto (Almería), La Hita and La Sagra

The Calar Alto fireball detection station (CAHA) , together with the station operated by the Institute of Astrophysics of Andalusia (IAA-CSIC) in Sierra Nevada, and others located at different sites across Spain, are part of the S.M.A.R.T project, led by researcher José María Madiedo (IAA-CSIC), aimed at monitoring this type of object. In particular, the Calar Alto (CAHA) station and the IAA station in Sierra Nevada operate under a collaboration agreement between Professor Madiedo and both institutions.