Originally posted by danielsil18
Would I be able to hear the sonic boom or the jets after the rumble?

American military aircraft are never allowed to fly supersonically over the US, under normal peacetime conditions, except in specially designated areas. One such area is the High Altitude Supersonic Corridor (HASSC) in southern California. This corridor extends from northwest of Los Angeles to the Colorado River near Las Vegas, Nevada. A portion of the HASSC passes through the R-2508 Special Use Airspace Complex that includes Edwards Air Force Base, the China Lake Naval Air Warfare Center, and the Army's Fort Irwin. The HASSC is one of several special supersonic zones in the region, and is used by the Air Force, Navy, and foreign militaries for training and flight testing. The aircraft operating in this restricted area are responsible for the many odd rumbling noises and mysterious sounds often reported as secret, exotic, cutting-edge new airplanes supposedly developed at the infamous "Area 51."

Other special supersonic corridors exist througout the United States. Unlike the HASSC, most of these are not part of any Restricted Area, Prohibited Area or MOA (Military Operating Area). An example is a corridor in northeastern New York state near Saranac Lake. While the military controls access to and grants permission to fly supersonically through the HASSC, these other corridors are instead controlled by the FAA.

Nonetheless, there are special circumstances that do allow pilots to exceed Mach 1 over populated areas. US pilots are allowed to do so over South Korea due to the unique defense issues that nation faces. In addition, fighters performing combat air patrols over the US as part of Operation Noble Eagle in the wake of the September 11 terrorist attacks have broken the sound barrier on occassion to catch up to airliners during air-rage incidents. One such incident occurred over the suburbs of Chicago in October 2001 when two F-16 fighters intercepted an American Airlines flight from LA to Chicago after a passenger began threatening to crash the plane into the Sears Tower.

Originally posted by Teeky
Each time the lightning would strike the Earth would quake causing the houses to shake.
Also the rumbling sounded like a giant bowling ball was being rolled through the land. The rumbling and the shaking seemed to spread throughout the land and would last for about 30 seconds.