BY: Hana Saada
ALGIERS- The celestial body that was recently seen in Algeria is a meteorite and has no connection with seismic activity, a statement from the Center for Research in Astronomy, Astrophysics, and Geophysics (CRAAG) said on Tuesday.
The Center said it had “observed a ball of fire (meteorite) on the night of May 7 to 8, 2023, around 11:59 p.m. (local time), a phenomenon also reported by many citizens in different regions of the country”, stressing that “the ball of fire, which was very bright with a luminous trail, was sighted for several seconds, from west to southeast”.
“This celestial body is a meteorite picked up by the force of Earth’s gravity before entering the atmosphere of our planet at supersonic speed,” he explained.
According to initial calculations, the mass of the meteorite was estimated at “about 10 kilograms,” while the altitude of the fireball during the first flash of light was estimated at “about 25 to 40 kilometers in the sky.”
In this regard, the CRAAG reassures citizens that this astronomical phenomenon is natural and occurs regularly in the world at a frequency of about 10 times a year with the same force as the meteorite observed, stressing that it “has no link with seismic activity.