A bright meteor seen in Earth's skies on July 31 has been traced back to a comet called 169P/NEAT, which disintegrated thousands of years ago. The field of debris was found in Madrid, Spain.
The Alpha Capricornids Meteor Shower Produced a Meteor Fireball Over Madrid
Scientists believe the fragment that exploded over Madrid, Spain, was a part of Comet 169P/NEAT, which formed around the same time as the solar system, 4.6 billion years ago. Comet 169P/NEAT, an icy body that sheds debris as it travels, is responsible for the annual Alpha Capricornids meteor shower. It began around 3,500 to 5,000 years ago, when roughly half of Comet 169P/NEAT disintegrated.
Although the small fragment and the light show created when it was destroyed in Earth's atmosphere posed no threat, the European Space Agency (ESA) stated that the meteor is a cautionary tale. It was described in this manner because showers of tiny fragments are left by larger bodies that have passed close to our planet in the past, possibly happening again.
When a comet's mostly icy body approaches the sun, its ices instantly convert to gas in a process known as sublimation. The sublimation process sends a stream of ancient material into space that has not changed since the solar system's birth.
On July 31, the icy fragment, which astronomers believe was about 4 inches (10 centimeters) across, began to burn brightly in the Earth's atmosphere about 60 miles (100 kilometers) above Madrid. It had burned out by the time it reached about 48 miles (77 kilometers) above Guadalajara.
What Is Alpha Capricornids Meteor Shower?
According to Wikipedia, the Alpha Capricornids meteor shower with Comet 169P/NEAT as its parent body was discovered in 1871 by Miklos von Konkoly-Thege. The meteor shower has sporadic but relatively bright meteors and some fireballs.
The parent body was identified as asteroid 2002 EX12, which was discovered weakly active near perihelion in 2005. Then the name was changed to Comet 169P/NEAT.
Fireballs may be seen more frequently this season. The majority of the dust will not enter Earth's orbit until the 24th century.
Scientists predict that as more material from the comet drifts into Earth's orbit, the Alpha Capricornids meteor shower will become stronger in the coming centuries.
By 2220, the Alpha Capricornids are expected to become a major annual storm, according to ESA.
Trajectory of 169P/NEAT in Spain
Scientists used footage shot by an ESA-operated camera of the AllSky7 network in Cebreros, Spain, as well as cameras from the Southwestern Europe Meteor Network (SWEMN) and other on-the-ground cameras across Europe, to track the trajectory of the fireball, Space.com reported.
SWEMN researchers were able to trace the meteor back to its origins, revealing that it came from the same source as the Alpha Capricornids meteor shower.
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