Strange sonic boom rattles South Carolina
Around 5:30 p.m. local time on May 28, 2026, residents of Midlands of South Carolina reported hearing an immense boom. At first, people took to social media wondering if they’d just experienced an earthquake. But the United States Geological Society (USGS) was quick to respond, reporting that it was a sonic boom that shook the air instead of an earthquake that shook the ground. It said the magnitude of the event was 0.0, so definitely not an earthquake.
People shared video from an airport and Ring doorbells on social media that captured the sound and rattling of buildings. Some even reported feeling the pressure wave. Meteorologist Chris Jackson was in South Carolina at the time and said:
It felt like someone shoved me right in my chest an instant before the boom began.
Jon Palmer reported in a comment here at EarthSky:
I live in Rembert, South Carolina, about 30 miles east of Columbia. Our house bent to the east and then righted itself. Definitely an air burst. Hope I never feel one of those again.
See the sonic boom rattle an airport hangar in this X post.
And here’s another video from outside an airport that recorded the sonic boom.
What was it?
Could it have been an aircraft that created the sonic boom? It can happen when aircraft fly faster than the speed of sound. The aircraft pushes against the air and creates a shockwave that produces a sonic boom. But that doesn’t appear to be what happened in this case.
A more likely possibility was that it was a meteor. The one problem is that there were hardly any reports of a meteor sighting associated with the boom. But it was daylight at the time, and there were some clouds in the area. Often with big meteors, you’ll either see the bright glow as it heats up in the atmosphere or you’ll see a trail of smoke, even in daylight. And while the American Meteor Society has not received an onslaught of sightings (you can see the pending reports here) there were a few reports of what might have been a meteor.
One possible eyewitness was Aaron Olson in Columbia, South Carolina. Aaron posted on X:
I noticed some odd contrails immediately following the boom too. Sort of radiating from a common point. Lends itself to a meteor explosion.
And this doorbell camera appears to show a trail from a meteor. Look for it in the upper right. It resembles an airplane’s contrail.
Did you hear the sonic boom? Let us know in the comments below.
Bottom line: People in South Carolina heard a strange sonic boom on the evening of May 28, 2026, around 5:30 p.m. local time. The USGS said it wasn’t an earthquake. Could it have been a meteor?
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