A loud roar heard in Northeast Ohio on Tuesday morning, shocking homes and residents in the area, may have been caused by a meteorite, according to the National Weather Service.
The sound was reportedly heard in multiple communities around 9 a.m. on March 17, with people describing it as powerful enough to shake windows and briefly alarm pets and workers.
Medina County residents report loud roaring sound
Medina County residents took to social media on Tuesday to report a “loud” explosion that rattled windows and shook homes. Some residents also reported hearing loud “crackling” sounds. Workers at a factory in Medina reported a loud roar amid the constant hum of machinery. A Medina County resident complained that her dog kept barking for several minutes.
Watch a suspected meteor pass through the atmosphere in Pittsburgh
Northeast Ohio isn’t the only region feeling the boom. The National Weather Service in Pittsburgh also said it received reports of loud explosions and “fireballs in the sky” in western Pennsylvania. A NWS employee stationed there captured video of the aforementioned meteor passing through Steel City’s atmosphere.
Meteor sensation? Meteorologists explain possible sonic boom
WKYC Chief Meteorologist Betsy Kling added on Instagram that the National Weather Service in Cleveland believes the area may have experienced a sonic boom caused by a meteor entering the Earth’s atmosphere.
“The National Weather Service in Cleveland says we heard and felt the roar of a meteor! We haven’t heard of anything hitting Earth,” Kling wrote. “Meteors burn up and break apart multiple times as they enter. A sonic boom occurs when an object travels faster than the speed of sound (around 767 mph), creating a shock wave.”
There were no reports of injuries.
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This story has been updated.
Craig Webb and Lauren J. Young contributed to this report.
Reporter Anthony Thompson can be reached at ajthompson@gannett.com or on Twitter @athompsonABJ
This article originally appeared in the Akron Beacon Journal: Loud bang in Akron-Cleveland today was caused by meteor, National Weather Service says
