The American Meteor Society says a meteor approximately three feet wide entered the Earth’s atmosphere near the Massachusetts/New Hampshire state line, creating a loud boom over Southern New England on Saturday, May 30, 2026. The Meteor Society says it is likely it disintegrated before reaching the surface of the Earth.
The loud boom caused police agencies and others to scramble in an effort to understand the origin of the double boom that shook buildings in Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
The American Meteor Society received dozens of reports from Delaware to Montreal of the double boom, the ground shaking, or sightings of the fireball, which reportedly looked like a shooting star in the daytime sky.
Fire program monitor Robert Lunsford says, “It was definitely bigger than a normal fireball, about a yard wide.”
He added: “We would need more information about the trajectory, the speed, and other aspects to know for sure if it hit the ground, but if it didn’t burn up, then it would have landed in the ocean. Most of them do burn up before they hit the ground.”
‘Boom’ Reports Registered
People in multiple states posted on social media saying they felt the buildings shake. Several posted videos captured the two quick booms, with no fire, smoke, or other visual prospects of the cause.
People filed reports with the US Geological Survey registering the shaking felt with the National Earthquake Information Center, according to spokesman Steve Sobie.
The agency created an event page, based on the number of “Did you feel it?” reports received on the website. Sobie says there was no seismographic event registered in the area, meaning it was not an earthquake.
The Massachusetts Executive Office of Public Safety posted on X: “Although we do not yet know the cause, there are no known emergency police or fire requests connected to these reports, and we do not believe there is any public safety threat.”
Security cameras across the region captured the boom, as first responders and emergency management officials took to social media to acknowledge residents and affirm there was no indication of a public threat.
Confirmed Meteor
NASA confirmed a fireball meteor over New England at 2:06 p.m. ET. Currently, information puts the speed of the fireball at about 75,000 mph, and it appears it was fragmented at an altitude of 40 miles above extreme northeast Massachusetts/southest New Hampshire. According to NASA, the fireball was not part of any currently active meteor shower; however, it was a natural object and not a re-entry of space debris or a satellite. The energy the fireball released when it broke apart is estimated to be equivalent to 300 tons of TNT, which is why the loud boom resonated throughout the area.
Residents in various communities in the surrounding area reported their homes shook in the aftermath of the sonic boom.
According to the GOES satellite, a large flash around Massachusetts Bay was seen and was likely the meteor exploding. A meteor becomes a meteorite when it impacts the Earth’s surface. This one did not.
Similar Reported Event
On Thursday, residents of South Carolina reported hearing a loud boom. It was confirmed by the US Geological Survey that this was also a sonic boom. The cause has not yet been determined.
Investigators continue to examine the cause of the loud noise in South Carolina. Today’s report in Massachusetts adds another page to a string of startling booms in the eastern United States.
This is a developing story. GLV will continue to provide updates as more information becomes available.
Sources:
WJAR: Loud noise heard throughout Southern New England
CNN: Meteor over Massachusetts causes explosion reports, sightings from Delaware to Montreal
FOX Weather: Loud sonic boom heard and felt by hundreds across parts of New England
Featured Image Courtesy of LJ Hopkinson’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
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