A friend had called me in the morning last week to ask if I had felt an earthquake the night before. She said it rattled her windows but there was nothing on the Internet or news to confirm it. I said I felt nothing and figured it must have been something local.
However, that night as I lay in bed reading my Kindle--BOOM. Yes my windows rattled. It was like a very large, violent but brief explosion. I ran to the windows to make sure there hadn't been a huge accident between a couple of semi trucks but all was quiet.
The next day I was talking to my neighbor and she confidently said that it was a sonic boom ( the sound a plane makes when it flies faster than the speed of sound, around 700 MPH). I had heard those years ago but it had been a long time since I had enjoyed one.
Well for the next 3 nights, at approximately the same time--around 10 PM-- we got a repeat explosion.
On the Internet no government agency wanted to claim the noise and I read that sonic booms are actually illegal and have been banned since 1973. Military aircraft are supposed to only break the sound barrier when they are over barren areas. Hum--are they trying to say I live in a barren area?
The bad thing is the it happened 4 nights in a row and for 3 of those nights it woke me up about 20 minutes after I just had gone to sleep. It took every sleep trick I had in the book to get back to sleep about an hour later. Being violently startled seems to really energize the mind. It put me in the high energy, fight or flight mode.
Now my body seems to be on that nightly schedule and I will wake up at that hour even when there is no BOOM. I am so easily trained :( Sigh. Guess I could try to stay awake till 11 o'clock but reading makes me sleepy and I can't help it. I doze off, often with glasses on.
Come on guys, we have enough going on with global warming, pandemics, isolation and hostile countries. We don't need this also.
Have you ever been a victim of the BOOMS or is it just in my "barren" area?
Maybe a UFO? Anyway, we only get the booms around July 4th, which isn't too bad.
ReplyDeleteTom,
DeleteOoh, a UFO would be interesting. Think the other world guys however have given up on us:)
I have two helicopters that fly low over my house every single night between ten and midnight. And every morning. They belong to the super wealthy who are flying home to and from their beach front compounds on Lake Michigan, an hours drive by land. I've heard a sonic boom in a few years but they are scary.
ReplyDeleteJean,
DeleteNow those rich choppers would be annoying as the devil. Why can't they make the trip in daylight? Grr.
We had them in Colorado often
ReplyDeleteNot here, that I know of anyway
As for sleep, I learned this from an acupuntcurist (spelling?)...with your toes curled grab your foot & place your thumb between the ball of your foot while wrapping your hand around top of foot
...massage vigorously with your thumb (pressure) for 30 sec. to a minute. Repeat with 2nd foot. Recline & relax. Sleep will come & very rested after 6-8 hrs. sleep
Anni,
DeleteNow that foot massage sounds promising. I will try it. Guess it would be better if I had someone to do it for me. I'll manage.
I do my own feet. Bud would purposely tickle instead of massage. And Isaiah is not declawed. lol
DeleteWell, this was certainly a waker-upper to read first thing Monday morning! I watched something about this on the Smithsonian Channel recently, about aviation engineers working on a "quieter" SST. But yours would have to be military Patti... boy I'd love to know what you're hearing! If you find out anything more, please give us an update?
ReplyDeleteDoug,
DeleteIt has to be military but they keep denying it is them. Since it is illegal, that is probably why the denial.
We often believe an earthquake has occurred around here but it is usually dynamite sounds coming from the nearby rock quarry. I am with ApacheDug wanting you to follow up with us if you learn anything.
ReplyDeleteAnnie,
DeleteI would imagine dynamiting would occur in the daytime. That I wouldn't mind nearly as much. Last night was quiet. Maybe the complaints have registered.
We've been hearing booms, sometimes they're accompanied by shakes sometimes not. No earthquakes are being reported and everyone says it's the mines, but the mines are saying it's not them. Luckily it's almost always around 6 pm or between 5 am and 6 am.
ReplyDeletePlain Jane,
DeleteWelcome to TNS and thanks for commenting. Isn't it funny how no one wants credit? At least yours is in the daytime. More thoughtful.
I have never heard a sonic boom. I am surprised that you heard them for so many nights in a row and that there was no information about them on the internet. I did read the other day that there was a gender reveal party in New Hampshire that set off dynamite and that people all around heard the crashing boom and windows rattled. Some even had their home's foundation crack. Maybe there were four gender reveal parties in. your neck of the woods! We haven't had a earthquake here in a while, and now I'm nervous.
ReplyDeleterobin,
DeleteHa ha, if it is gender reveal, we are expecting a population explosion also. Those people in NH really took it too far.
Strange how you get so use to earthquakes that a lack is concerning. Hope they are just in a time out.
Being where I live we hear a lot of odd things and see a lot of low flying aircraft, military, etc. After 9/11 it was constant here as you can imagine. But never this repeated night after night as you are dealing with. And what does your town say? Others must have reported it. That is really weird and I'm sorry it is keeping you awake.
ReplyDeleteMargaret,
DeleteI know of 4 different people in much different locations have all heard them. Our weekly newspaper comes out tomorrow. Will be interested what they have to say.
Having lived most of my life next to an air force base, I've heard many sonic booms. But falling asleep is a mystery. I don't think I need as many hours it seems. But I do feel frustrated unable to sleep in the middle of the night.
ReplyDeleteAnn,
DeleteOh how I hope your sonic booms were in the day time. Hearing them at night is a rude awakening.
I don't have issues with the BOOM but I know about the brain getting trained. My neighbor used to work the graveyard shift and I would hear him come home every morning at 4 a.m. It got the point where I woke up 60-seconds before I heard his car.
ReplyDeleteSue,
DeleteIsn't it amazing how easily we get trained. That would have been a bummer at 4 AM. A little later and you could have used him as a useful alarm clock.
I don't believe I've ever heard a sonic boom and from your description I hope I never do. I can imagine it would be difficult to fall asleep again after being woken so suddenly.
ReplyDeleteEileen,
DeleteIt is a totally unfriendly way to wake up. Kind of like a glass of water in the face or a mean sibling shaking you:)
No sonic booms here for years. We are under the flight path for the rescue helicopters that come into our hospital which is only 7 blocks away. Almost every night when Covid was at it's peak here a few months ago. After awhile I could tell the aircraft apart by the sound of their engines. Sigh.
ReplyDeleteCelia,,
DeleteThose choppers are so loud and knowing they are carrying someone seriously ill must be really disturbing.
Sure hope the booms halt soon, Patti! I remember waking in the middle of the night, many years ago, to an earthquake tremor. My first panicky thought was that a nuclear bomb had been deployed! Ye gads!!!
ReplyDeleteFlorence,
DeleteYikes, that is one scary thought but you are right. We are a bit disoriented when wakened like that and it is not good thoughts that pop into our heads.
I live very near a military base, and in the flight path of a major airport; there used to be many sonic booms. But none recently. I do have C-17s that fly routinely over my house at 11 pm; they are low enough to rattle my windows. I've gotten accustomed to it. :) I would also have terrible trouble getting back to sleep after being startled awake.
ReplyDeleteMargaret,
DeleteSo glad the sonic booms have stopped for you. I Googled C17 and that is one monster plane. It has to be loud.
Yes, they are very big. I think they can haul tanks inside them.
DeleteI have heard sonic booms, but it would be very disconcerting to be awakened by one. I do hope you figure out what it is, and that you will share it when you do. I'll have to try that method of getting back to sleep that Anni shared.
ReplyDeleteDjan,
DeleteIt does shock you quite a bit to be so violently awakened.
Me too on trying the massage. I love simple cures.
Haven't heard one for years and years I'm pleased to say.
ReplyDeleteFun60,
DeleteThey did make them illegal. These were the first I have heard in years.
No booms here, at least for a long time.
ReplyDeleteLinda,
DeleteThat is good. I hope in a long time from now I can say the same.
Now that Tom mentioned it, why are UFO sightings where they come and go in split seconds not followed by a sonic boom?
ReplyDeletejoeh,
DeleteInteresting thought. Probably they figured out a way to muffle the sound so as not to draw attention. Or maybe it just doesn't happen at warp speed.
My husband and I both grew up in a neighborhood that wasn't too far from McDonnell Douglas Aircraft which is now Boeing. In the early to mid 1960's there were sonic booms quite often. All of the kids in neighborhood got a kick out of them. Our parents were probably concerned about plaster cracking. Probably about 20 percent of the neighborhood kids dads worked for McDonnell Aircraft and then Boeing.
ReplyDeleteNow days I would jump and worry about who blew something up if there was a sonic boom. I haven't heard a sonic boom in a long time.
susie,
DeleteWow, there much have been a lot of them. I can see where kids would consider them fun.They do love firecrackers.
They were outlawed in 1973. I know it had been so long since I had heard one I didn't recognize it.
I have never heard a sonic boom.
ReplyDeleteRover,
DeleteHope you never have to deal with one. Imagine a huge explosion over your house.
Oh my. I would call the police to complain. I also would write a letter to the editor of the newspaper.
ReplyDeletegigi,
DeleteI think it might have been just some Tom Cruise wannabes just seeing how fast they could go. For now they have stopped. Ahh.
I live very near to Fort Bragg and almost always when we get a light rainy night they practice thair guns. The BOOMS actually shake the windows and are extremely loud but not sonic.
ReplyDeleteGinnie,
DeleteAnd they have to shoot them at night? Sorry about that. Not fun.
That is the weirdest thing! Have you called the news stations or any government offices? There’s got to be somebody who knows. At first I thought you were going to talk about that guy who set off 80 pounds of explosives for a gender reveal. I don’t know what state that was though. I hope you find out what that’s all about. That’s really awful… and scary! And lack of sleep would make me very cranky.
ReplyDeleteKay,
DeleteSomeone must have alerted the authorities for they have stopped. Think it was a few top gun pilots that got carried away. Would have loved to have seen that high speed chase to arrest them:)
For the past few days I have been startled by huge booms. that rattle windows. Dump trucks are delivering that red construction sand to undeveloped lots next door. The boom is when all the load is dumped and the big 'tailgate"? slams closed. Missing the woods that have been bulldozed down. Praying for good neighbors when the planned houses are built. And praying that Hubby and I will be good neighbors, too!
ReplyDeleteLC,
DeleteSo good to see you here and on my reading list. Welcome back. You have been missed.
Yes I have heard that dump truck boom before. Pretty loud.
I too haven't heard one in years. Maybe I wouldn't recognize one.
ReplyDeleteMage,
DeleteThat was my problem. My neighbor had to remind me of what it was.
That would be irritating. Sometimes late at night we have a helicopter going over the house. They are damn noisy and like you, once something like that wakes me up, I find it impossible to get back to sleep. I hope they stop!
ReplyDeleteI don't recall sonic booms as you describe. Sorry you condition so easily — now, how to reverse that training? I don't have the answer — you’re doomed, unless it wears off in time which surely it will— won’t it???
ReplyDelete