A loud sonic boom was heard in Orlando, shortly after SpaceX confirmed that a Falcon 9 rocket's first stage had landed at Landing Zone 40 in Florida.
SpaceX posted that the Falcon 9's first stage had landed at Landing Zone 40.
Soon after, Orlando resident also took to the platform, asking: “Whoa, did we just hear a sonic boom from reentry?”
The timing has fueled speculation that the loud sound heard in Orlando was caused by the returning Falcon 9 booster. Several other social media users from Central Florida also reported hearing a loud boom following the launch and booster return.
SpaceX Falcon 9’s first stage landing: watch video
Videos from SpaceX and further reports from Orlando and surrounding areas could offer more evidence of what residents heard as the Falcon 9 booster returned to Landing Zone 40.
The Falcon 9 first stage successfully returned to Landing Zone 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station after launching the Globalstar satellite replenishment mission.
The booster, identified as B1090, was making its 14th flight and was targeted to land back at LZ-40 less than eight minutes after liftoff, according to Spaceflight Now. The mission carried eight Globalstar satellites into low Earth orbit, with their deployment sequence scheduled to begin more than 56 minutes after launch.
{{/usCountry}}The booster, identified as B1090, was making its 14th flight and was targeted to land back at LZ-40 less than eight minutes after liftoff, according to Spaceflight Now. The mission carried eight Globalstar satellites into low Earth orbit, with their deployment sequence scheduled to begin more than 56 minutes after launch.
{{/usCountry}}Spaceflight Now reported that a successful landing would mark the 649th Falcon booster landing for SpaceX.
SpaceX has also confirmed the booster landing at LZ-40. “Falcon 9’s first stage lands on the Of Course I Still Love You droneship,” according to a post on X.
Sonic boom heard amid SpaceX launch
The sonic boom quickly drew reactions on X, with several users describing how loud it was.
A user wrote, “Nice sonic boom, music to my ears,” while Alfredo P said, “The boom was very loud awesome.”
Another user posted, “That was super loud hearing the sonic boom from Mims.”
“Sonic BOOM just made me spill my beer. I know it's eight minutes and my time management was off," said another X user.
“Damn! Just heard the sonic boom! My house was rumbling….” another wrote.
Meanwhile, one user shared what he described as a “space jellyfish UFO effect” from the SpaceX launch, saying ice crystals around the Falcon 9's Merlin engines reflected light to create the striking visual.