GREAT BALL OF FIRE: Flash appeared in skies above Costa del Sol after asteroid passing

A FLASH appeared in the skies above Malaga Province after debris from an asteroid flew over the Costa del Sol on Monday morning.

Astronomers with the University of Huelva’s SMART project, who watch the skies for signs of cosmic events, spotted the fireball at around 2.51am.

They said their data showed the debris became visible when it was 103 kilometres above the Mediterranean before burning out at around 58 kilometres above Malaga Province. It is estimated to have been travelling at speeds of around 80,000 kilometres an hour.

Videos released by the astronomers, who man observatories in the provinces of Almeria, Granada and Toledo, showed the asteroid light up briefly before vanishing seconds later.