Sound waves reconstruct Alaska fireball path after cameras miss key details

When a bright fireball appeared in the Alaska sky last spring, cameras and satellites failed to provide detailed data. However, low-frequency sound waves generated by the meteoroid traveled hundreds of miles and were detected by a network of earthquake and volcano-monitoring sensors.

When a bright fireball streaked across the Alaska sky last spring, the usual tools scientists rely on to track such events—cameras and satellites—did not provide a detailed picture. But the meteoroid left behind something else: low-frequency sound waves that traveled hundreds of miles and were captured by a dense network of earthquake and volcano-monitoring sensors on the ground.