Flash of Light, Sonic Boom in Dallas/Ft. Worth Neighborhood Attributed to Exploding Meteorite
A mysterious “boom” rattled a North Texas neighborhood and residents have no idea what exactly it was or what it could mean.
Residents in North Oak Cliff said they heard an explosive noise around 8:34 p.m. on Wednesday night. Some reported seeing a flash first, then the load noise.
Resident Isaac Martinez managed to capture a short video of the event from his security cameras.
“Out of nowhere, just this pow!” said Phillip Washington, who heard the noise from his Kings Highway apartment. “Just this huge explosion.”
Washington was one of many who reported hearing the noise.
“It was without a doubt, the loudest sound that I’ve heard,” said Washington. “You could feel the percussion of the sound.”
Some suspected fireworks or gunfire. A few thought the noise was a bad car wreck.
Others figured a transformer blew up, but no one reported any power outages in the area.
“It was immediately apparent that something had fallen from the sky,” said Ron DiIulio, an astronomer at the University of North Texas.
DiIulio said the noise was from a sonic boom caused by either a meteorite or some sort of space debris.
“As it’s coming in, it explodes. But as it’s exploding it’s also passing the speed of sound. So that’s what we’re get as it comes in,” said DiIulio.
He said hundreds of tons of meteorites fall every day.
DiIulio said most burn up quickly or are rarely caught on camera.
From what he saw captured in the video, DiIulio estimates whatever entered the Earth’s atmosphere was about the size of a grapefruit.
“They should just consider themselves lucky that they got an experience in life that a lot of people don’t,” said DiIulio. “A true shooting star.”
Having never experienced a fall himself, DiIulio is pretty jealous and hopes folks like Washington made a wish.
“I know! Why didn’t I do that?” said Washington. “I should have wished for something man!”
Jeff Paul
CBS News – Dallas/Ft. Worth
