Meteor Causes Minor Earthquake in Southeast Michigan

A still image from dashcam footage of the meteor.

Residents of southeast Michigan were startled Tuesday night when a bright flash lit up the sky, accompanied by a loud boom and subsequent shaking. 

Dash cam footage from the event shows a fireball streak downward before burning out.

NASA was able to explain the phenomenon as a meteor.

Bill Cooke, lead for NASA’s Meteoroid Environment Office at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama, said the fireball was caused by a one-to-two yard asteroid entering the atmosphere at approximately 28,000 mph.

A minor earthquake caused by the celestial object was recorded by the United States Geological Survey, who said the magnitude 2.0 quake was centered about five miles west-southwest of New Haven--around 40 miles northeast of Detroit.

The National Weather Service confirmed in a tweet that the phenomenon was likely caused by a meteor.

After reviewing several observational datasets, the NWS can confirm the flash and boom was NOT thunder or lightning, but instead a likely meteor. We continue to monitor feeds from astronomical agencies for official confirmation of a meteor. #miwx

— NWS Detroit (@NWSDetroit) January 17, 2018

The meteor was visible in six states and Canada, according to the American Meteor Society's report map, featured below.