A meteor travelling at approximately 75,000 miles per hour exploded over northeastern Massachusetts and southeastern New Hampshire on Saturday afternoon, generating shock waves strong enough to rattle windows and shake homes across parts of New England.
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NASA confirmed the event within hours, ruling out any link to satellite re-entry or space debris and identifying it as a natural meteoroid. The explosion released energy equivalent to around 300 tonnes of TNT as the object, estimated to be about 3 metres wide, broke apart at an altitude of roughly 40 miles above Earth.
The fireball broke apart at 2:06 PM ET around 40 miles above Earth, triggering loud booms and shockwaves felt across parts of New England. Dozens of eyewitnesses across multiple northeastern states reported seeing or hearing the blast.
“This fireball was not associated with any currently active meteor shower. It was a natural object and not the re-entry of space debris or a satellite. The energy released during the breakup is estimated to be equivalent to about 300 tonnes of TNT, which accounts for the loud booms,” said Jennifer Dooren in comments to AFP.
Beyond reports of the sound, numerous eyewitnesses across New England described seeing a bright fireball streak across the afternoon sky, unusual in itself, as most meteors are only visible at night. The South Shore area near Boston was identified as the likely entry point based on trajectory data.
Robert Lunsford of the American Meteor Society told the Associated Press the object was "definitely bigger than a normal fireball" roughly a yard wide and that further data on speed and trajectory would be needed to determine whether any material survived to reach the surface. His preliminary assessment was that if the object did not burn up entirely during fragmentation, any surviving pieces would most likely have come down over the Atlantic Ocean rather than on land. "Most meteors disintegrate before they ever reach the ground," he noted.
NASA has not reported any confirmed meteorite landings. No injuries or structural damage were officially recorded as of Saturday evening, though widespread reports of startled residents, barking dogs, and rattled household objects indicated the shock wave had been felt well beyond the immediate trajectory zone.
Saturday’s meteor comes amid an active year for fireball sightings. The American Meteor Society recorded 2,322 fireball events in the first three months of 2026 alone, with the Massachusetts blast expected to rank among the most significant in the US in recent years.