Meteorite that landed in Cape Cod was a 'lone wolf' from the outer solar system, scientists find
A meteor that exploded into fragments that fell into Cape Cod Bay was once part of the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, scientists found.
A bright daytime meteor, known as a bolide, fell over Cape Cod Bay in Massachusetts on May 30, 2026, at 1:06 p.m. local time (18:06 UTC). The meteor created a sonic boom that was heard across the northeastern United States. Scientists from Europe and the United States, led by Juha Vierinen of the Arctic University of Norway, used radar, weather radar, infrasound stations, and camera footage to track the meteor's origin and orbit.
The meteoroid, about a meter in diameter, was likely made of iron and had a comet-like orbit around the sun, influenced by Jupiter's gravitational pull. The bolide released an energy equivalent to 500 tons of TNT as it fragmented mid-air, with only three other recorded bolides having a higher impact energy.
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