[meteorite-list] Strange Booming Noises Not New To South Carolina

From: Ron Baalke <baalke_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Mon Dec 13 13:16:06 2004
Message-ID: <200412131807.KAA06255_at_zagami.jpl.nasa.gov>

http://www.thecarolinachannel.com/news/3992650/detail.html

Strange Booming Noises Not New To State

Experts Debate Sounds' Source
Associated Press
December 13, 2004

CHARLESTON -- A loud boom breaks the stillness on a clear day. There are
no storms in the area, no jet aircraft flying by and no reports of
earthquakes or explosions.

The booms, heard from time to time in South Carolina, are popularly
known as Seneca Guns, a folk term for unexplained booms that have been
noted along the East Coast for years.

The name comes from Seneca Lake in upstate New York where the booms have
been heard at least since the 1800s. Author James Fenimore Cooper, who
wrote "The Last of the Mohicans" among other novels, wrote about the
phenomenon in a short story more than 150 years ago.

One was heard in the Charleston area on Aug. 1 last year. Another
apparent Seneca Gun was heard in May 2000 in the Midlands of South Carolina.

While there is apparently no official records of such booms, they
generally bring dozens of phone calls to law enforcement officials who
can generally offer no explanation.

There is no agreement on what causes the booms.

Rich Thacker, a senior forecaster with the National Weather Service in
Charleston, said they could result of colder air meeting warmer Gulf
Stream air. There have also been suggestions the booms might be caused
by methane gas explosions on the ocean floor.

Tyler Clark, the chief geologist for the North Carolina Geological
Survey, said he has heard explanations ranging from sonic booms carrying
over the ocean to methane gas explosions, meteorites and even
unidentified flying objects.

Duke University seismologist Peter Malin said he knows how to tell where
the noises are coming from. He suggests putting a recorder under ground
and then comparing the readings to readings from a recorder above ground.

He suggests the booms are caused in the atmosphere by electrical
discharges with no visible lightning.
Received on Mon 13 Dec 2004 01:07:46 PM PST