Meteor Creates Sonic Boom over New England
A meteor traveling at 75,000 mph created a loud boom heard across parts of New England on Saturday, with NASA confirming it was a natural object and not related to any meteor shower.
Residents in New England reported hearing a loud boom on Saturday afternoon after a meteor, also referred to as a "fireball," entered the Earth's atmosphere. NASA confirmed that the meteor was detected around 2:06 p.m. traveling at a speed of 75,000 mph, and it fragmented at about 40 miles above northeast Massachusetts and southeast New Hampshire. The explosion is estimated to have released energy equivalent to roughly 300 tons of TNT, leading to the audible noise.
The meteor was not linked to any active meteor shower according to NASA, which stated it was a natural object and not debris from a satellite or space debris. Local authorities, including the Watertown Police Department, received numerous reports from residents about the sound and confirmed there were no associated hazards reported at that time. The Massachusetts Executive Office of Public Safety and Security echoed this, noting similar reports of ground tremors but ruling out any public safety threat.
According to the United States Geological Survey, the loud boom was likely caused by a bolide, a term used for a meteor that explodes in the atmosphere. They explained that sonic boom events, unlike earthquakes, occur along a linear path in the atmosphere.