A meteor generated a loud bang early this Saturday afternoon (30) in the United States, with reports of windows and houses shaking in several cities in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Residents also described the noise in more distant areas, with records ranging from the state of Delaware to Montreal.
The American Meteor Society (AMS) reported that the sound, heard between about 2:10 pm and 2:30 pm local time, was caused by the entry of a meteor estimated to be 3 feet wide, near the Massachusetts-New Hampshire border, north of Boston.
According to Robert Lunsford, from the AMS Fireball program, the object was “larger than a common bolide” and the probability is that it did not hit the ground. He added that if it had not completely disintegrated, fragments could have fallen into the ocean.
In and around Boston, residents reported a series of loud bangs that shook buildings. Videos posted on social media captured what sounded like two quick explosions, with no signs of fire or smoke in the sky. There were also records with the United States Geological Survey by people who felt the tremor. The US Geological Survey (USGS) confirmed that it had opened an event page to receive the reports, but reported that there was no earthquake reading on the seismographs.
Satellite data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), cited by CBS Boston, showed a light signature compatible with the passage of a meteor during the same period as the bang, with likely entry over the south coast of the Boston area. Broadcaster WJAR (NBC 10) also reported a flash recorded by the GOES satellite in the Massachusetts Bay region at around 2:10 p.m.
Why was the noise so loud
Meteoroids often burn in the atmosphere at very high speeds. When a larger body survives air friction longer and dives at supersonic speeds, it generates shock waves similar to those from a supersonic jet. These waves can propagate to the ground like a sonic boom and be heard dozens of kilometers away, even by those who did not see the flash.
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According to CBS Boston, this Saturday’s episode (30) is part of a sequence of bolide occurrences in North America in 2026. In March, a meteor over Ohio caused a sonic boom heard in several states. Days later, another event in Texas generated a strong shock wave and scattered meteorites in the Houston region. AMS researchers recorded an unusual increase in large bolides and sonic booms in the first few months of the year. There is no evidence of a threat of impact to Earth.
