The explosions and the boom sounds heard by the residents could be the result of “a rather significant bolide/meteor entering the atmosphere.” On Saturday, a large explosion was heard by a number of Boston residents. Residents said they felt shaking and heard powerful blasts throughout Eastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island.The explosions and the boom sounds heard by the residents could be the result of “a rather significant bolide/meteor entering the atmosphere.” (Unsplash)USGS has not reported an earthquake, but buildings were believed to be trembling. A local on X wrote, “Police are unsure what just happened. No confirmed visible fire or smoke yet.”According to posts shared online, people in areas including Brighton, Somerville, Medford, Melrose, Southborough, and other nearby communities reported hearing the sound nearly simultaneously. Some residents also claimed they felt vibrations inside their homes.Read more: Boston explosion update: What happened in Massachusetts today? Earthquake, blast and boom detailsOne Reddit user wrote that they heard a boom that “shook everything in my room.” The user wrote, “I’m near Brighton, and I just felt a rumble and heard a boom that shook everything in my room. It did not sound like thunder, and too deadened and far away to shake my room. Anyone know what happened?”Booms were also heard in South Carolina and Rhode IslandRhode Island also reported hearing what sounded like an explosion and possibly a sonic boom. The sound was noticed on social media by a number of locals. Like Boston, there isn't any definite action, though.A strong boom rocked homes and structures throughout the Midlands region on Thursday, shocking people in central South Carolina.Witnesses claimed to have heard and felt the impact from several locations spread throughout the state when the inexplicable sound was reported at 5:30 PM. Columbia, Lexington, Sumter, Camden, Blythewood, North Augusta, and Darlington County were among the places from which reports were received, indicating that the incident affected a fairly wide area.According to ABC News, he USGS verified that the rattling, which started at 5:24 p.m. at Saint Andrews, was consistent with a sonic boom rather than an earthquake.What could be the cause behind the explosion?The GOES-19 satellite spotted a large flash that doesn't seem to be connected to thunderstorm activity. According to Nick Stewart, a meteorologist and wind analyst on X, the explosions and the boom sounds heard by the residents could be the result of “a rather significant bolide/meteor entering the atmosphere.”Stewart wrote, "The flash density product really shows this anomalous 'flash' which is pretty distinctive of a bolide/meteor reentry. east of Boston. This is the likely source of the loud boom/explosion."However, authorities have not confirmed a specific cause behind the explosion at the time of reporting.Shirin Gupta is a content producer with the Hindustan Times. She covers everything between politics, entertainment and sports at the US desk. Shirin got interested in political journalism during her time as a web editor at her college newspaper NCC News in Syracuse when she first started seeing the effects of national politics in life of her fellow colleagues.