NASA verifies that a meteor explosion triggered the sonic boom heard over Boston.

On Saturday at approximately 2:06 PM ET, a meteor blazed across the northeastern US and detonated just north of Cape Cod Bay. Numerous witnesses captured the fireball on camera, and it was powerful enough to rattle homes and be visible in satellite imagery, illuminating the sky.

Initially, some locals speculated that the shaking and loud boom might have been an earthquake. However, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) clarified that it was a “widely felt sonic boom from a suspected bolide.” NASA later described the incident as a “bright fireball… accompanied by a loud noise” in a statement shared on social media.

The meteor was hurtling through the atmosphere at about 75,000 miles per hour when it reportedly fragmented at an altitude of 40 miles over northeastern Massachusetts and southeastern New Hampshire. The energy released during this breakup is estimated to be equivalent to around 300 tons of TNT, which explains the loud sound.

NASA’s deputy news chief, Jennifer Dooren, also informed AFP that this fireball was not linked to any active meteor shower, confirming it was a natural object rather than space debris or a satellite re-entering the atmosphere.