PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WJAR) — UPDATE: The American Meteor Society says a meteor estimated to be 3 feet wide entered Earth’s atmosphere near the Massachusetts/New Hampshire state line, causing a loud boom over Southern New England Saturday afternoon. The meteor society says it’s unlikely it hit the ground, disintegrating before it reached Earth’s surface.
NASA says they can confirm a fireball meteor over New England at 2:06 p.m. EDT today. Current available information puts 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. NASA says 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. The energy released at breakup is estimated to be equivalent to about 300 tons of TNT, which accounts for the loud booms.
A meteor that was estimated to be 3 feet wide and moving at 75,000 miles per hour exploded 40 miles above the Massachusetts/New Hampshire state line on Saturday at 2:06 p.m. (WJAR)
NBC 10 has received reports of the noise from residents of various communities in the area, with many saying their houses shook in the aftermath of the noise.
The loud boom as heard in Peabody, Massachusetts. Cara DeNisco via Chime In.
NOAA’s GOES satellite showed a big flash in the vicinity of Massachusetts Bay, which was likely the meteor exploding.
A meteor likely entered Earth’s atmosphere in the vicinity of Massachusetts Bay around 2:10 p.m. on Saturday, causing a sonic boom that was heard across Southern New England. (NOAA)
Most meteors are tiny, about the size of a grain of sand. That’s why we don’t usually hear any noise during meteor showers. The meteor that caused this boom on Saturday, however, was much larger than that.
Most meteors are just the size of a grain of sand, but the one that exploded on Saturday was much larger. (WJAR)
A meteor becomes a meteorite if it makes impact with Earth’s surface, but it appears this one did not.
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This is a developing story, and will be updated as we learn more.
