Last January 28, 2016, the U.S. Geological Survey or USGS reported ten sonic booms that were charted from southern New Jersey to Long Island, New York. According to their documentation, the first sonic boom was recorded at 124 PM near Hammonton and Trenton, New Jersey. In the next hour and a half, nine more sonic booms were recorded by the USGS. At the time, the source of the sonic booms remained unidentified. Thankfully, John Bellini, a geophysicist from the USGS National Earthquake Information Center in Golden, Colorado, was quick to reassure the public that the noise were sonic booms and not signs of impending earthquakes.
Officials from McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in Trenton have since started an investigation as to where the booms originated.
"We have reports of ground shaking in S. Jersey - currently our training ranges are clear and no MDL aircraft are capable of sonic booms. We're working with local authorities to determine the cause and will have an update ASAP" explained local officials in a recent statement.
According to National Aeronautics and Space Administration or NASA, sonic booms are thunder-like noise that usually comes from an aircraft or other air-faring vehicles flying faster than the speed of sound.
Following the mild panic, the source of the sonic booms has since been revealed. Several U.S. military officials have explained that their F-35C Joint Strike Fighter Jet might be the cause of the sonic booms recorded last Thursday.
"Aircraft from Naval Test Wing Atlantic were conducting routine flight testing in the Atlantic Test Ranges this afternoon that included activities which may have resulted in sonic booms. The test wing is critical to the safe test and evaluation of all types of Navy and Marine Corps aircraft in service and in development and is primarily based out of Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md. "reads the official statement.