alt Hacker NewsPSA: The word "explosion" has multiple definitions, plenty of which are actually quite reasonable to apply to meteors! It can refer to the sound alone, for example. The people reporting an explosion in Massachusetts were not incorrect!
It would however, be incorrect to claim that the meteor had noting to do with explosions.
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jojobas • today at 12:00 AM
No? There is no violent expansion or bursting, even if the sound is similar. It is as much an explosion as a supersonic jet passing by, and that is not much.
The term makes people think atmospheric heating causes an actual steam explosion and that's the source of shockwave, which can't be further from truth.
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None of the definitions I found are concerned with only sound. One mentions sound as a result of an explosion.
PSA: expressing an opinion (incorrect or otherwise) is not actually a public service announcement