September 14, 2026 | 10:40 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Residents in Gorontalo, a province on Indonesia’s Sulawesi Island, were startled by a loud boom and bright flashes of light early Saturday, September 12, 2026, at around 12:20 a.m. local time.
BRIN astronomy professor Thomas Djamaluddin confirmed that the phenomenon was caused by a large meteor, or fireball known as a bolide, entering Earth’s atmosphere.
Thomas said video recordings, residents’ closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage, and sensor data from the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysical Agency (BMKG) confirmed that the object was a large meteor.
“The sound of the boom was caused by the effect of a shock wave when the meteor entered the atmosphere at high speed, exceeding the speed of sound,” Thomas said in a written statement to Tempo on Monday, September 14.
How Fast Was the Meteor?
The astronomy and astrophysics researcher explained that meteors can travel at speeds exceeding 11,000 meters per second, or around 39,600 kilometers per hour.
That is significantly faster than the speed of sound, which is around 340 meters per second, or 1,240 kilometers per hour.
The meteor’s high speed caused it to heat up and glow as it entered the atmosphere. Because the object was relatively large, it appeared particularly bright.
“The shock wave was what caused the booming sound and could make window glass vibrate,” Thomas said.
Why Were There Multiple Flashes?
Thomas said the meteor passed through a cluster of clouds, causing its light to reflect and appear as multiple flashes in one of the residents’ video recordings.
The exceptionally bright flash may also have been caused by the meteor’s final explosion, known as a terminal flash. The event briefly turned the dark night sky extremely bright.
Why Did Gorontalo and Kotamobagu Record Different Times?
Residents’ CCTV footage showed the flashes occurring at around 12:15 a.m. local time. BMKG sensors recorded slightly different times.
BMKG Telaga in Gorontalo detected vibrations at around 12:18 a.m., while BMKG Kotamobagu recorded vibrations at around 12:20 a.m.
Thomas said the discrepancy could be explained by the possibility that residents’ CCTV clocks were not properly calibrated.
The shock wave detected in Gorontalo at around 12:18 a.m. also took time to travel to Kotamobagu, where it was recorded two minutes later.
“That is why there were no reports of the booming sound or bright flashes in North Sulawesi. The roughly two-minute difference was the time it took for the shock wave to travel from Gorontalo to Kotamobagu,” said Thomas, a former head of the National Aeronautics and Space Agency (LAPAN).
Meteor Estimated to Be 10 Meters Wide
Thomas estimated that the meteor responsible for the boom and flashes in Gorontalo was around 10 meters in diameter.
He based the estimate on a comparison between the vibrations produced by the event and a previous incident in Bone, South Sulawesi, which was attributed to an asteroid measuring around 10 meters.
The latest meteor event was reportedly heard across almost the entire Gorontalo Province. Residents described the sound as resembling thunder or a heavy object falling.
“We happened to all still be awake. At around 12:22 a.m. local time, the boom was very clear and briefly caused everyone in the house to panic,” Gorontalo Utara resident Kayla Rahman said, according to Antara.
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