Big ‘BOOM’ Leaves Bitterroot Residents Baffled. What Caused It?

A buzz is swirling around Montana's Bitterroot Valley today, as residents are looking for answers to a giant "BOOM" that occurred on the evening of January 3rd, 2024.

Residents reported hearing what sounded like a sonic boom which typically happens when an object breaks the sound barrier. Even though Montana has a giant Air Force base with fighter jets capable of breaking the sound barrier, not many have ever heard a sonic boom in person.

I experienced a sonic boom during an archery hunting trip in the Missouri River Breaks. It was a quiet afternoon, as I set up to hunt elk. I clearly remember hearing what sounded like two swishes of air above my head. When I looked up, two fighter jets were zipping by overhead. It was nearly a second later when I was rocked by a giant "BOOM." As a resident of the Bitterroot myself, I also had my windows shaken by a loud sound yesterday. This sound was not the same as the sound I heard that day hunting. This was more like a giant thunderclap.

Calls began flooding into the Ravalli County Sheriff's office looking for answers to the loud noise. But, authorities could not confirm the cause of the sound. People from Hamiton to Lolo began searching social media for answers to what caused the giant "BOOM."

People began to speculate that the cause was everything from a meth lab explosion to fireworks and even a Yellowstone earthquake.

One explanation seems to make the most sense. Many residents of the Bitterroot speculate that the loud noise was caused by a meteorite. Claims of people witnessing a meteor followed by the loud boom continued to pop up on social media.

The explanation is not that far-fetched. If it was a meteor, the sound could have been caused by the space rock exploding as it entered the earth's atmosphere.

A similar incident happened just last year, as residents of northern Utah experienced the same thing. A meteor falling from space caused a giant BOOM heard across much of the state.

No official reports have come out to say that a meteor was the cause of the loud noise. But, simply judging by the sound I heard, eyewitness reports and similar incidents that have occurred in other parts of the country. It is safe to say that the boom was not man-made. Most likely a speeding space rock.