Earth, Moon, and Planets 68, 217-222 (1995)


The spectrum of fireball light taken with a 2-m telescope

Jiri Borovicka(1) and Jaime Zamorano(2)
(1) Astronomical Institute, 251 65 Ondrejov Observatory, Czech Republic
(2) Dept. Astrofisica, Universidad Complutense, 28040 Madrid, Spain

Abstract. A bright fireball appeared on the sky during the spectrophotometric observations with the 2.2-m telescope at the Calar Alto Observatory. The CCD spectrum of the scattered light of the fireball has been recorded. The spectrum is typical for a very bright, slowly moving fireball. For the first time, the spectral region 6600-7150 A could be studied in such a case. Six spectral lines were identified here, the most remarkable being the lithium line at 6708 A. The estimated lithium abundance proved to be consistent with meteoritic values.

Key words: meteors, spectra, lithium

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