A meteor exploded off the coast of Massachusetts, causing a loud boom to be heard throughout the state Saturday afternoon, according to WBZ-TV Chief Meteorologist Eric Fisher.
It was heard around 2:11 p.m.
Satellite data showed that the meteor entered the atmosphere over the South Shore near Boston. There are no reports of where the meteor landed. Meteors tend to burn up before reaching the ground, Fisher said.
Dozens of phone calls came into the WBZ-TV newsroom reporting a loud explosion heard around Boston, as far as Ipswich and Johnston, Rhode Island.
Maps from NOAA show where the meteor entered the atmosphere.
NOAA
The American Meteorological Society explained on its website that meteors move incredibly fast and larger rocks, which survive longer in the atmosphere, can sometimes cause a sonic boom.
“Friction with Earth’s air causes them to begin vaporizing, leaving a bright streak across our sky. Meteors can zip through the air at 25,000 to 160,000 miles per hour (11 to 72 km per second),” they said on their website. “They can penetrate deeply enough into the atmosphere to produce pressure waves and, thus, sonic booms.”
There is no more information available.
More from CBS News