Sonic boom causes local earth tremors, explain please

Boom not an earthquake

Defence spokesman Paul Lineham said the F1-11 had been conducting engine tests about 60 nautical miles off the coast in a designated supersonic area.

Mr Lineham said it was highly unusual for the "boom" to travel so far and it had most probably travelled in an inversion layer between two different temperature levels.

Mystery Boom Rattles Australia's Queensland Coast

Earthquake sensors did not register a disturbance, even though the 15-second "boom" hit thousands of homes between Buderim and North Stradbroke Island.

Earthquake monitoring centres were flooded with calls that a tremor had hit just after 3.30pm, but no damage was reported.

Last night the RAAF admitted that one of its F-111s had gone supersonic east of Ballina in NSW. But they played down the chances that the jet was cause of the boom.

RAAF Wing Commander Rob Lawson said the F-111, flying at 160m, finished its manoeuvre 100km off the coast at Beenleigh.

He said he could not rule out the possibility that the jet had caused the "tremor". But "we go supersonic there all the time and people in Brisbane don't ever notice it," he said.

Air traffic control agency Airservices Australia said last night there was an area of air space off the coast where military aircraft were permitted to fly faster than sound.

Spokesman Richard Dudley said while that area did not extend as far north as Bribie Island, it was possible given certain weather and wind conditions that the sound of a sonic boom might travel some distance.

"However, that would not explain vibrations people reported experiencing," Mr Dudley said.