The meteor responsible for a loud boom heard in Rhode Island and Massachusetts Saturday afternoon was approximately 5 feet in diameter and weighed more than 12,000 pounds, according to NASA.

The object entered Earth’s atmosphere at roughly 42,000 mph, a NASA spokesperson said. It then traveled through the atmosphere from northwest to southeast for 26 miles before breaking up and producing a meteorite fall into Cape Cod Bay.

The energy released when the object broke up at an altitude of 31 miles is estimated to be equivalent to about 230 tons of TNT, according to NASA.

Professor Ralph Milliken of the Department of Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences at Brown University spoke with NBC 10’s Mike Cerullo. (WJAR)

While it’s not very common to experience a 5-foot-wide meteorite, there is a significant amount of debris from space that reaches Earth.

“The estimates are that we probably have about 5,000 tons of cosmic dust and material and meteorites landing on Earth. The vast majority of that is super tiny stuff, we’re talking things that are smaller than a grain of sand, or the thickness of a human hair,” said Professor Ralph Milliken of the Department of Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences at Brown University. “For something of this size a few feet across, it’s not that common, but a few a year. Most of these would occur over uninhabited areas, over the ocean, and we wouldn’t be able to see them, but they are detected.”

Because of its size, a meteorite with a 5-foot diameter is difficult to track before it enter Earth’s atmosphere.

“It’s virtually impossible to kind of know in advance of this size object coming,” Milliken said.

Scientists are, however, able to track much larger space objects. NASA has been developing technology to try to deflect larger objects if needed.

Events like what occurred in New England over the weekend are recorded. Although other fireballs enter Earth’s atmosphere throughout the year, many of them materialize over water and uninhabited areas.

Championship season is upon us, and we’re tracking every title winner in Massachusetts this spring.

From the golf sectionals in late May to championship weekend June 11-14, a four-day stretch in which 31 titlists will be crowned across boys’ and girls’ lacrosse, boys and girls’ tennis, boys’ and girls’ rugby, boys’ volleyball, softball, and baseball, we’ll have you covered.

Find all the dates, brackets, seedings, matchups, and links to our postseason previews here.

Follow us on X @GlobeSchools, Instagram @BGlobeSchools, and Facebook to stay up to date.

Over at Globe.com/Schools you’ll find our daily scoreboard, nightly Takeaways, game coverage, videos, live streams, and our weekly Varsity News newsletter (sign up for free) to keep you in the know.

Division 1: Lexington girls, St. John’s Prep boys

Lexington girls graduate to two-time Division 1 track champions, St. John’s Prep sprints to boys’ title

Division 2: Billerica girls, North Andover boys

Billerica girls unphazed by move up to Division 2, going back-to-back as North Andover boys dominate

Division 3: Canton girls, Walpole boys

Canton girls cap greatest season with first Division 3 track title, Walpole boys win by thinnest margin

Division 4: Duxbury girls, Newburyport boys

Historic win for Duxbury girls, Mohoric paces Newburyport boys to Division 4 outdoor track championship

Division 5: North Reading girls, Weston boys

It’s four in a row for North Reading girls, two straight for Weston boys at Division 5 track championships

Division 6: Ayer Shirley girls, Abington boys

Ayer Shirley girls pick up where they left off, Abington boys twinning at Division 6 track championships

Day 1, Divisions 1, 2, and 5: Lexington boys and girls setting the pace at Division 1 track & field championships

Day 1, Divisions 3, 4, and 6: Canton girls make a strong run to first at Division 3 track championships

South: Walpole | With Tori Adams as its driving force, Walpole scores third straight MIAA South girls’ golf championship

North/Central/West: Hopkinton | Concord-Carlisle’s Sophie Redmond, Hopkinton rule MIAA girls’ golf championship for North/Central/West

With titles for Natick and Peabody and smiles for all, MIAA unified track championship ‘beyond inspiring’

Brendan Kurie can be reached at brendan.kurie@globe.com. Follow him on X @BrendanKurie.

MASSACHUSETTS — Residents throughout New England were simultaneously startled as a meteor that landed in Cape Cod caused a sonic boom this past weekend.

Meanwhile, a bus driver is facing charges after five Massachusetts residents died in a crash on a highway in Virginia.

Plus, another State Trooper was caught handling a wrong-way driver situation on Route 1.

Mysterious Boom Heard Across MA Was An Exploding Meteor, Experts Say

The noises were heard around 2:11 p.m. Saturday, with people describing a sudden bang that rattled windows and even shook some homes. The American Meteor Society said that the booms heard were actually caused by a meteor about three feet wide entering the atmosphere near the border of Massachusetts and New Hampshire.

Residents as far as Ipswich and Johnston, Rhode Island, reported hearing and feeling the sensations. Meteorologist Nick Stewart shared satellite images from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, showing where the meteor entered the atmosphere and combusted while traveling at 75,000 miles per hour above the ocean.

Bus Driver Charged After MA Family Of 4, Worcester Woman Killed In VA Crash

Jing S. Dong, of Staten Island, New York, now faces two counts of involuntary manslaughter in connection with the collision, which occurred around 2:35 a.m. Friday on southbound I-95 near Quantico. Among those killed were a 45-year-old man, a 44-year-old woman, a 13-year-old girl and a 7-year-old boy, all from Greenfield, Massachusetts. All were in the Acura, which police said caught fire after the collisions. Police on Saturday evening identified the fifth person killed as Priscilla R. Mafalda, 25, of Worcester, Massachusetts, who was riding in the Suburban struck by the bus.

In total, about 44 people were transported to area hospitals, including three with critical injuries.

State Trooper Hospitalized After Route 1 Wrong-Way Crash In Peabody

State Police said the trooper was hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries after police acted in coordination to protect traffic and stop the driver, who was traveling southbound on Route 1 North in Peabody. The incident occurred not far from the location on Route 1 where State Trooper Kevin Trainor was killed when his cruiser was hit head-on in a wrong-way crash in Lynnfield last month. The driver in Sunday’s crash was also hospitalized and charged with operating under the influence of liquor, negligent operation of a motor vehicle, and driving the wrong way on a state highway.

Rapidly Expanding Grocery Chain Has Big Plans For MA

Sprouts Farmers Market is slated to launch up to 40 locations throughout the region in the coming years. Construction has begun for the first Massachusetts spot in Weymouth, which has an opening date of 2028. The Phoenix-based organic grocery chain has more than 480 stores in 25 states.

Saturday’s Meteorite Was ‘Fishy Squisher’ And NASA Knows Where To Find It In Cape Cod Bay

Data from NASA suggest fragments of the meteorite lie in waters from the middle of the bay to about 10 miles northeast of the town of Sandwich. The agency said late Saturday it picked up radar signatures of the fragments from four radar sites, and termed the strike a “fishy squisher.” The meteorite entered Earth’s atmosphere about 40 miles above the Bay State and southern New Hampshire, creating the sonic boom. Water in the bombarded portion of Cape Cod Bay is about 100 feet deep.

35K Without Power As Winter-Like Storm Pummels MA With 55+ MPH Winds

Massachusetts residents throughout the North Shore were without power on Saturday morning as a winter-like storm tore a path of tree damage, downpours, and fierce winds throughout New England. Widespread tree damage was reported across the state, with the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency reporting 34,228 customers without power as of 11:20 a.m. Wind speeds reached a high of 55 miles per hour. Temperatures dropped into the 40s with wind chills in the 30s as the storm arrived across the Bay State. The unsettled weather will continue through Monday and Tuesday before a warming trend takes hold later in the week.

See Also:

Cape Shoreline Named Among The Nation’s 10 Best, According To ‘Dr. Beach’