Loud Boom and Fireball Over Northeast Ohio Confirmed as Meteor by National Weather Service

A loud boom heard across northeastern Ohio and parts of Pennsylvania on Tuesday morning has been attributed to a meteor, according to the National Weather Service (NWS). Residents in Cleveland and surrounding areas reported the sound as a powerful explosion that shook homes and caused widespread concern. The boom was described on social media as “the loudest boom,” with some witnesses also reporting seeing a bright fireball streak across the sky.

The NWS office in Pittsburgh shared a video captured by one of its employees showing a fireball with a long tail moving rapidly across a clear sky. The Cleveland NWS office released satellite imagery from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) GOES-19 satellite, which detected a green flash over Cleveland consistent with a meteor event. This detection was made using the Geostationary Lightning Mapper (GLM), an instrument typically used to monitor lightning but also capable of identifying meteors due to their bright, lightning-like flashes.

Meteorologist Jeff Tanchak of CBS affiliate WOIO explained that the boom likely occurred when the meteor broke the sound barrier upon entering the atmosphere. However, the exact timing of the meteor’s atmospheric entry remains unclear. The American Meteor Society has not yet issued a statement regarding the sighting. The NWS noted that meteors, which are rocky objects from space entering Earth’s atmosphere, can produce fireballs, and any fragments that reach the ground are classified as meteorites.

This event follows recent meteor sightings in Ohio’s skies. In mid-February, a meteor was captured on a doorbell camera around 11:30 p.m., and another fireball was recorded on March 15, according to local media reports. The NWS and NOAA continue to monitor such occurrences, and further updates on this latest meteor event are expected as investigations proceed.