For a few seconds on Saturday afternoon, people across the northeastern U.S. heard a loud explosion and felt buildings shake.
It turned out that massive boom was not an earthquake. According to NASA, a meteor exploded high above New England, creating a sonic boom powerful enough to be heard across multiple states and even parts of Canada.
A surprisingly small space rock caused the huge boom
The meteor itself wasn’t particularly large. NASA estimates it was only about 5 feet wide—roughly the height of an average person. But size matters very little when a rock is hurtling through Earth’s atmosphere at a blazing 42,000 mph.
As the space rock slammed into our atmosphere, extreme friction caused it to superheat, break apart, and violently explode roughly 31 miles above the ground. The blast released energy equivalent to about 230 tons of TNT, creating the massive sonic boom that rattled windows and startled residents across the region.
While fragmented pieces reportedly fell toward the Cape Cod area, fortunately, no injuries or property damage have been reported.
Why NASA was not tracking the rock beforehand
You might wonder why something capable of shaking buildings wasn’t spotted sooner. The short answer is it was too small.
According to NASA, objects this size are incredibly difficult to detect while they’re still in space.
Large asteroids are much easier to monitor because they’re significantly bigger and reflect more sunlight. A five-foot rock moving through space is a much harder target to spot.
Also, while this meteor generated a lot of attention, it is not the kind of object that keeps planetary defense experts awake at night. NASA’s actual concern here is large near-Earth asteroids measuring more than 460 feet across. These are sometimes called “city killers” because they’re large enough to survive atmospheric entry and potentially cause major destruction if they hit a populated area.
The good news is that NASA currently tracks more than 40,000 large asteroids near Earth and continues searching for more.
Fireballs seem to be having a moment
This is not the first dramatic meteor sighting of 2026. Just days ago, cameras captured a bright green fireball streaking behind the eruption of Mount Mayon in the Philippines. And in the past few months, a meteor crashed through the roof of a Texas home and another fireball exploded over Ohio.
Most of these events are harmless, but they serve as a reminder that Earth is constantly moving through a cosmic shooting gallery.
Source: Live Science