(meteorobs) possible fireball in Portugal

[Ed Cannon]

--- In meteorobs at yahoogroups.com, "Marco Langbroek" wrote:

> There is a picture (and thanks to Jose Campos for pointing 
> me to it!) apparently showing the object on
>
> http://sic.sapo.pt/index.php?article=873&visual=3&area_id=5

Very interesting still photos!
 
> Unfortunately the vido refuses to load when I try.

Me too.

> The picture shows a comet-like object; which to me is 
> strongly reminiscent of the pictures I have seen of 
> manouvring satellites.

I agree completely.  Here in Austin a few months ago we saw 
an orbital insertion burn, and it looked very much like 
this image, a trumpet shape.  We even were able at the 
beginning briefly to see the burn, a blue color.  That was 
at geostationary height (22,000 miles/36,000 km).  A much 
lower event would be much more spectacular.  It sure would 
be good to have coherent information on when and where that 
photo was taken, and on which direction the phenomenon was 
moving!

> However, that does not explain the radar detections 
> pointing to something with aircraft speeds & altitudes.

Apparently at first their air force said they didn't see 
anything.  Probably as Tony Beresford mentioned, the later
radar reports which sound like an aircraft are just a
coincidence.
 
> If this picture indeed shows the object, then the Iridium 
> flare hypothesis clearly is out of the question too.

Definitely.

Also, I believe that somewhere else there's a claim that it
was a pass of a Russian Progress craft before it re-entered.
It would have done a burn, but when and where?  Again, times
and locations and such details are needed.

Bottom line seems to me to be that it was not meteoric.

Ed Cannon - Austin, Texas, USA