230 tons of TNT: That's how much energy meteor that detonated over US was packing
A small asteroid exploded high above New England on May 30, creating a spectacular daytime fireball and a loud sonic boom. Here's all that Nasa confirmed about the asteroid and the blast.
On Saturday evening, May 30, 2026, a brilliant fireball streaked across the sky and exploded high above New England in the United States, creating a dramatic light show and a loud sonic boom that startled many locals.
Nasa has now confirmed the full details of this rare daytime event, revealing it was a small asteroid that lit up the afternoon skies before breaking apart.
WHAT DID NASA SAY ABOUT THE ASTEROID?
According to Nasa, the event took place at around 11:36 pm IST on Saturday, May 30.
The meteor, roughly 5 feet across and weighing about 5.6 metric tons, entered Earth's atmosphere at a staggering speed of over 67,000 kmph.
It travelled nearly 42 kilometres through the sky from northwest to southeast before exploding at an altitude of about 31 kilometres.
The explosion released energy equal to roughly 230 tons of TNT, which explains the loud boom heard by people on the ground.
That amount of energy is rather huge, equalling the burning of 28,000 litres of petrol instantly instead of over days or weeks. Or, it is equal to an earthquake of 3.5 magnitude.
But the asteroid never survived to reach the ground.
Pieces of the rock likely fell as meteorites into Cape Cod Bay, an area of the Atlantic Ocean near Massachusetts.
No one was reported injured during or after the event and neither was any damage reported on land.
WHY DID THE ASTEROID BLAST?
Space around our planet is filled with leftover rocks and dust from the early days of the solar system, billions of years ago.
When these objects enter Earth's atmosphere, they are called meteors.
Most of the meteors are tiny and burn up completely, creating the familiar shooting stars we see at night. Larger ones, however, create bright fireballs that can be seen even during the day and may produce a sonic boom when they break apart.
This particular event stood out because of the size of the asteroid and the fact that it happened during daylight hours over a populated region.
Such fireballs are uncommon but not unheard of, and they give experts valuable information about objects entering our atmosphere.
Earth's atmosphere does an excellent job of protecting us by burning up most space debris before it reaches the ground. Big impacts that could cause real harm are extremely rare.