Friday, July 27, 2018

Now what?

We've had a week or more of thunder storms here in Southport, and a couple of nights ago a lighting bolt hit a neighbor's air conditioning unit and fried it (I think I can identify the particular strike; it was a deafening triple boom, like a high-powered rifle being fired three times in rapid succession).

This evening, while Mrs. Paco was discussing the weather with another neighbor, the lady mentioned a phenomenon that I've never heard of: something called "Seneca guns". They are loud booms that have no proven source, but are apparently fairly common along the eastern coast. Speculation is that they are the result of either minor seismic events or strange doings in the atmosphere. Here is some additional detail.

If this were a very recent phenomenon, I'd guess it might simply have been me firing one of my .41 Magnums with hunting loads over at Ye Olde Shooting Range, but stories of the booms go back to the mid-19th century, at least.

7 comments:

bruce said...

The thunder god is angry.

JeffS said...

Yeah, atmospheric conditions (not just thermal inversions) will echo and amplify loud noises. I've seen this a couple of times.

The only question is ... ... what caused the explosions in the first place?

If I were a Democrat, I'd be screaming "TRUMP COLLUDED WITH THE RUSSIANS!"

Luckily, a Democrat I am not.

Paco said...

Haw! Yeah, Trump's probably responsible.

bruce said...

Lightning, I've lost 2-3 modems during my Pacoenterprises internship (10 years?). We have loose phone wires on the window, once watched lightning strike down the road while sparks came out of the wire on the window. Stopped using a landline, now full wireless, slower but worth it for the peace of mind. We sit on a ridge of red iron sandstone.

Anonymous said...

Even a very tiny seismic shift can sound like an major explosion. Many years ago I was living across the street from a public park. Suddenly there was a window-rattling BOOM. Holy cow, had someone set off a bomb in the park?! Nope, nothing. I learned a few days later that a teeny, tiny tremor had been recorded in the area. It had been recorded by that famous seismic research institute in So Cal, the name of which escapes me but their regular TV expert was a husky gal with a haircut like my dad's.

Paco said...

I remember sitting down to dinner when we lived in Miami one July 4th, and we suddenly heard a window-rattling BOOM!. But it turned out to be our crazy neighbor who had fired a cannon in his front yard.

Deborah said...

It's Cal Tech (Earthquake Research). I think they're in Pasadena. The spokeswoman for many years was Dr. Lucy Jones. I don't remember her being husky or having a haircut like that. She was a trusty source after every quake. She left in 2016. Big shoes to fill.