Mysterious sonic boom heard across Massachusetts was a meteor, experts say

People across eastern Massachusetts reported hearing an extremely loud boom on Saturday afternoon, and many police departments in the state said they were inundated with calls, but what exactly was that?

“There’s a satellite lighting detection around Boston -but no lightning! No earthquakes on USGS either,” Gardner said.

The American Meteor Society confirmed that the booms heard about 2:30 p.m. were caused by a meteor about 3 feet wide entering the atmosphere around the New Hampshire border with Massachusetts, north of Boston.

Fire program monitor Robert Lunsford said the society received dozens of reports from Delaware to Montreal with people either hearing the double boom, feeling the ground shake or seeing the fireball — which he said looked like a shooting star in the daytime sky.

“It was definitely bigger than a normal fireball, about a yard wide,” he said.

But Lunsford said it’s unlikely the meteor struck the ground.

“We would need more information about the trajectory the speed and other aspects to know for sure if it hit the ground, but if it didn’t burn up, then it would have landed in the ocean,” he said. “Most of them do burn up before they hit the ground.”

NASA confirmed there was a fireball over New England at 2:06 p.m. Initial information put the fireball’s speed at roughly 75,000 mph, and it appears to have fragmented at an altitude of 40 miles above extreme northeast Massachusetts/southeast New Hampshire.

This fireball was not associated with any currently active meteor shower, but it was a natural object and not a re-entry of space debris or a satellite, NASA added. The energy released at breakup is estimated to be equivalent to about 300 tons of TNT, which accounts for the loud booms.

The Massachusetts Executive Office of Public Safety and Security had earlier addressed the incident on social media, saying around 3:45 p.m. that state public safety officials had received reports of an audible boom and ground tremors in the eastern part of the state.

“Although we do not yet know the cause, there are no known emergency police or fire requests connected to these reports and we do not believe there is any public safety threat,” the post on X read. “We remain in contact with our local, state, and federal partners to monitor any impact and understand the cause when it becomes available.”

Police and fire departments across the state also took to social media saying they had received numerous reports from concerned residents who heard the loud boom sound.

“The Boom: No reports of any damage or local incident as of yet. Earth Quake maybe,” Coventry, Rhode Island, police said.

Police in Cambridge said they were aware of reports and concerns over the loud boom heard.

“At this time, it appears the noise was heard and felt across Eastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island. However, we are unaware of any specific issues or incidents originating in Cambridge,” police wrote on Facebook.

In Newbury, the fire department said their communication center had received a number of calls from concerned residents who report witnessing a significant geological-type activity. 

“It’s been described as a ‘sonic-wave’ or ‘explosion’ like sensation.  We felt it here at the PD too and are unaware of any public safety concerns in Newbury or the surrounding communities at this time,” the Facebook post read. “We do not know the cause of the activity.  Please only call the Communication Center with relevant information, not to inquire about the source.  With the wind, rain, trees & power lines down, minor costal flooding, now this, we’re experiencing a heavy call volume today and want to keep all lines free for emergencies.”

Needham police also asked residents to stop calling 911 and the non-emergency number, unless police or emergency services are needed.

“We have no information at this time and phone lines are being tied up with actual calls for service,” the Needham Police Department wrote on Facebook. “Yes, we think that was an earthquake…or maybe a sonic boom. Either way, we are over today.”

Wrentham’s police chief said the large explosion that people heard and called about was likely a large meteor entering the earths atmosphere, according to multiple sources, though none official as yet.

“The explosion was heard and felt throughout New England, shaking homes and causing many people to be justifiably concerned,” Bill McGrath said. “We have no reports of damage or injuries in Wrentham and haven’t heard of any injuries in the region.”

NBC10 Boston’s Facebook followers reported hearing it from Bedford, Blackstone, Westport, Framingham, Georgetown, Attleborough, and Cape Cod. Several said they both heard and felt whatever it was.

Some people thought trees fell on their houses, saying their homes shook. Others said their dogs were going wild, and they watched for lightning but never saw any. Many said that it scared them, that they’d never heard anything like it.

Several people also filed reports with the U.S. Geological Survey, registering the shaking they felt with the National Earthquake Information Center, agency spokesman Steve Sobie confirmed Saturday.

The agency opened an event page, based on the number of “Did you feel it?” reports it received on its website. But he said there was no event registered on the agency’s seismographs, meaning the shaking was not due to an earthquake. The USGS has said this event was a widely felt sonic boom from a suspected bolide, or a large meteor.

Dr. John Ebel, of Boston College’s Weston Observatory, says we didn’t see the space rock because of the day’s clouds.

“If it had come through with clear skies, my guess is even during the day people would have seen a streak of light across the sky,” Ebel said. “The Earth is always giving us interesting points. Always something that makes my life really kind of fun when it happens.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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