Residents of New Jersey and parts of New York City were startled Tuesday by a loud boom that rattled buildings and sent people scrambling to social media to find out the cause. At this time, an exact cause remains under investigation, but reports of a fireball meteor speeding through the atmosphere is emerging as the leading suspect.
The boom, reported around mid-morning, was accompanied by shaking and even sightings of a bright light streaking across the sky. With no earthquakes detected by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), speculation quickly turned to celestial explanations.
NASA Weighs In on the Fireball
NASA’s Meteoroid Environments Office acknowledged social media reports and eyewitness accounts suggesting a fireball. They estimate the object entered our atmosphere at a staggering 38,000 miles per hour, passing over the Statue of Liberty before disintegrating over New Jersey. This could explain the loud boom and shaking felt by residents.
Bill Cooke, lead for NASA’s Meteoroid Environments Office discussed the meteor that was spotted around the same time: “Based on this data, we estimate that the fireball was first sighted at an altitude of 49 miles above Upper Bay (east of Greenville Yard). Moving a bit east of north at 34,000 miles per hour, the meteor descended at a steep angle of 18 degrees from vertical, passing over the Statue of Liberty before disintegrating 29 miles above midtown Manhattan.”
To corroborate the meteor reports, the American Meteor Society of amateur spotters lists around 43 sightings between 11:16-11:20 a.m.
In Lakewood, NJ – Judah Bergman spoke with Eyewitness News, and said he witnessed the fireball streak across the sky from his window.
Bergman said: “It was long and really, really fast. It looked like a flaming, long rod or something on fire and flying through the sky.”
Another report by Justin A. located in Jackson, NJ reported: “I was floating in the lazy river at 6 flags on my back. I saw the steak when I opened my eyes. I am not sure what direction at all I was facing, I was on back back just looking straight up. I did listen after for a sonic boom, as I thought it may have been a meteor, but there was other noise in the area so it made it hard to determine. But I thought I did hear a rumble in the background shortly after.”
Military Explanation?
While a meteor is a strong possibility, NASA has yet to confirm this definitively, and no meteorites, or fragments of the object that reach the ground, have been found. Military activity was also active in the region, and is being considered as a potential cause.
Tuesday’s event was an eerie, surprising experience for many in the tri-state area. The daytime fireball sighting and the subsequent boom caught many off guard, and looking for an explanation.
