Windows rattle. Pets panic. Walls shake. People run to social media and ask the same question: “Did anyone else hear that boom?”
In just a few weeks, loud unexplained booms have been reported in the USA and India — from the beaches of South Carolina to the plains of Oklahoma and the desert skies above Jodhpur — while NASA quietly tests a jet designed to break the sound barrier without the classic shattering bang.
Here’s a fresh compilation of recent mysterious booms, how officials tried to explain them, and what they might really tell us about the future of Seneca Guns–style skyquakes and quiet sonic booms.
1. Myrtle Beach, South Carolina — “The Whole House Shook”
Along the Grand Strand in South Carolina, residents reported a sudden loud boom and shaking that felt like an explosion or earthquake. Social media filled with comments about walls shaking and “like a cannon going off.”
Emergency officials and the local sheriff’s office had no earthquake, no explosion, no rocket launch to report. Some speculated about a military jet, others about Tannerite target practice or offshore activity, but nothing has been officially confirmed.
Read the local coverage of the Myrtle Beach boom here.
2. Norman, Oklahoma — Power Outage and Double Bang
In Norman, Cleveland County, a huge power outage knocked out electricity for thousands of customers. Around the same time, residents reported two loud bangs — sharp enough that many first thought of gunshots or an explosion.
Was it an overloaded transformer exploding? A substation fault? A sonic boom? Local officials focused on restoration of power and infrastructure issues, but for many people the real question remained: what exactly were those booms?
See the Norman power outage and noise report here.
3. Jodhpur, Rajasthan — Panic After an “Explosion-Like” Sound
Across the world in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, an “explosion-like sound” sent residents running outside, scanning the sky for smoke or fire. Social media lit up with reports of a massive blast, but again, no visible damage.
Later, authorities confirmed that the shockwave was caused by an Indian Air Force fighter jet performing a routine flight and crossing the sound barrier — a classic sonic boom strong enough to rattle homes and nerves across the city.
Read how the Jodhpur boom was linked to a fighter jet.
4. NASA’s X-59 — A Supersonic Jet That Wants to Kill the Boom
While cities freak out over sudden sky-shaking bangs, NASA and Lockheed Martin are testing the opposite: a jet that can break the sound barrier quietly.
The experimental X-59 Quesst just completed its first test flights over California. The aircraft is engineered to turn the normal window-shattering sonic boom into a soft “sonic thump,” quiet enough that supersonic commercial flights over land could become legal again.
In other words, at the same moment people are hearing unexplained booms, engineers are literally trying to design them out of the sky.
More on NASA’s “quiet” X-59 supersonic test flight.
🌐 What Connects All These Booms?
On paper, these booms look unrelated:
- A coastal shockwave in South Carolina with no clear source
- Loud bangs during a power outage in Oklahoma
- A confirmed fighter-jet sonic boom over Jodhpur
- NASA’s hush-hush mission to tame the sonic boom entirely
But together they point to a bigger pattern Strange Sounds has tracked for years:
- We live in a world full of hidden shockwaves — from jets, rockets, explosions, underground infrastructure, and atmospheric events. Discover 5 weather phenomena that create loud booms.
- Sound travels farther and stranger than we think, especially with temperature inversions, coastal ducts, or desert air channels. Discover the physics of accoustic.
- Authorities rarely give complete answers, either because they don’t know or because the source is military, experimental, or inconvenient.
Sometimes we get a clean explanation — like confirmed Seneca Guns-style sonic booms off North Carolina. Other times, the cause remains officially “unknown,” and the event just gets added to the long, loud history of mystery booms and skyquakes.
🔬 Are These Booms Dangerous?
Most of the time, no. Sonic booms and atmospheric shockwaves are more frightening than deadly. They can crack plaster, rattle windows, and spike heart rates — but they rarely cause structural damage.
What they do damage is our illusion that the sky is quiet and predictable. From meteors roaring overhead to jets testing new profiles to underground blasts coupling into the atmosphere, Earth is constantly sending shockwaves through its air.
We’re just finally starting to listen.
FAQ — Mystery Booms, Sonic Booms & Skyquakes
Are these mysterious booms always caused by fighter jets?
No. Some booms, like the one over Jodhpur, are later confirmed as sonic booms from jets. Others, like the Myrtle Beach event, remain unexplained. Possible sources include aircraft, industrial explosions, offshore activity, meteors, or atmospheric phenomena.
Could the Myrtle Beach boom have been an earthquake?
Local reports and monitoring showed no significant seismic event. That strongly suggests an atmospheric or man-made source rather than a tectonic one.
Why do people feel these booms over such a wide area?
Atmospheric conditions like temperature inversions and wind layers can bend and channel sound waves, allowing a single shockwave to be heard and felt tens of kilometers away. Over oceans and flat plains, this effect can be even stronger.
What makes NASA’s X-59 different from normal supersonic jets?
Unlike conventional supersonic aircraft, the X-59 is engineered to spread out its shockwave so that people on the ground hear only a soft “thump” instead of a sharp boom. If successful, it could lead to supersonic passenger flights over land without constant noise complaints.
Could some mystery booms be linked to meteors or fireballs?
Yes. Large fireballs can generate powerful shockwaves and meteor booms that sound like explosions or thunder, often with no visible meteor if clouds or daylight obscure the sky.
What should I do if I hear a mystery boom in my area?
Check local seismic networks, news outlets, and official channels. Note the time, direction, and whether you felt shaking. Reports from witnesses help build better archives of these events — and sometimes help uncover the real cause later.
