On any given day of the year, more than 200 tons of extraterrestrial material can fall to Earth, which shows that what happened in Gran Canaria last Wednesday, November 30, and the successive fireballs
that have been seen in the Canarian sky during the following days are a "totally normal" event.
This was explained by the astronomer and collaborator of the Malaga Astronomy Society, Gustavo Muler, who stated in statements to La Voz that this impact of material against the surface "happens constantly": "The material orbits and at some point, due to the force of gravity, collides with the atmosphere, both at night and during the day." In that sense, the professional recalls the famous Chelyabinsk Meteor, which also fell to earth during the day, as in the case of Gran Canaria, although the Russian one fared worse: "It was a stone of about 15 meters, and it affected 1,200 people." "The one in Gran Canaria caused so much noise because its speed was stronger than the speed of sound," illustrates Muler.
Meteorites, fireballs, shooting stars...
To determine if an object is a meteorite or a fireball, its trajectory must be taken into account, since if it reaches the earth's surface and is tangible, it is the first of the types. On the other hand, if it does not reach
us, it is a fireball.
"Taking the example of a shooting star - something that most people recognize - this celestial body is a potential meteoroid, but since it does not impact, it is not considered a meteorite. Therefore, any little stone that is spinning around the solar system, is smaller than an asteroid (less than 50 meters in diameter) and has a light that lasts more than five seconds, we can talk about a fireball," explains Muler.
"You don't have to be afraid of life"
Despite its frequency and influx, since according to the astronomer "this year many have been captured, an average of 5 or 6 per night", most fireballs are not dangerous and, if they were, they could be controlled. Muler indicates that today there are tools that allow "detecting the vast majority of bodies larger than 15 meters" and also to "calculate their orbits and divert them" in case they get too close to Earth.
"You don't have to be afraid of life," defends the professional, and recalls that this "life" is present in our day to day: "All the time iron, nickel, magnesium falls... In fact, the iron that runs through our veins and part of what we eat, has probably come from the sky. We are stardust," he concludes.
