Meteor identified as likely cause of boom heard across Cleveland

Updated on: March 17, 2026 / 10:57 AM EDT / CBS News
A loud boom heard over Cleveland was likely "a result of a meteor," the National Weather Service said Tuesday.

Some residents immediately feared the sound was an explosion, according to CBS affiliate WOIO.

One person told the station that the boom shook their whole house.

The sound was heard as far as New York and Pennsylvania, WOIO said.

One of our employees, Jared Rackley, caught this morning's meteor on camera from the Pittsburgh area.

pic.twitter.com/2LdqOpChti — NWS Pittsburgh (@NWSPittsburgh) March 17, 2026
One of our employees, Jared Rackley, caught this morning's meteor on camera from the Pittsburgh area.

pic.twitter.com/2LdqOpChti
WOIO meteorologist Jeff Tanchak said the boom occurred when the meteor broke the sound barrier, but he said it's not clear when the object entered the atmosphere.

More details about the meteor were not immediately available.

The American Meteor Society has not commented on the sighting yet.

The NWS said an instrument called a geostationary lightning mapper indicated a meteor caused the sound.

It detects quick flashes in the atmosphere and is usually used to continuously map lightning strikes, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

It can also identify meteors, which are bright and flash similarly to lightning.

The latest GLM imagery (1301Z) does suggest that the boom was a result of a meteor.

pic.twitter.com/CH7oJ4Q1OY — NWS Cleveland (@NWSCLE) March 17, 2026
The latest GLM imagery (1301Z) does suggest that the boom was a result of a meteor.

pic.twitter.com/CH7oJ4Q1OY
Other meteors have been seen in Ohio's skies in recent weeks.

In mid-Februray, one was spotted on a doorbell camera around 11:30 p.m., according to CBS affiliate WNBS .

Another fireball was caught on camera on March 15, local media reported .