Update 2: Mysterious explosion heard near Dingli

Mr Michael Debono

Jun 14th 2011, 12:54

Just compare thge time with the explosion in Sicioly and Libya. Could it be tha under sea volcano west of Malta?

Ms D Galea

Jun 14th 2011, 15:40

I imagine that the eruption of some volcano beneath the waters around Malta woudl have caused some very noticable sea disturbance

Christian Sciberras

Jun 14th 2011, 15:07

Tower control and MetWatch say otherwise...

Mr Mario Borg

Jun 14th 2011, 17:11

... or a small meteor exploding on burning out kilometers to the south of Malta.

Mr Josef Laspina

Jun 14th 2011, 11:35

Could it be an energy weapon like Haarp - ? - http://ahrcanum.wordpress.com/2010/03/08/sonic-booms-earthquakes-haarp/

Claude Mifsud

Jun 13th 2011, 11:07

You're wrong, the Wied Dalam Seismic Station is still active, and taken care of by the Physics Department at the University of Malta, more details here: http://193.188.45.245/

Mr Edmond Formosa

Jun 13th 2011, 12:02

Had a look at the link. However there is scrolling text:

'WDD station is offline at the moment. We apologise for the inconvenience'

Could be that data was still collected though.

Rowena Scicluna

Jun 13th 2011, 20:35

I agree.
We heard it too from Swieqi, and our windows and doors were pushed in (not rattled).
I, too, think something is being hidden from us.

Mr david debattista

Jun 14th 2011, 09:46

If it's not fund. it means something is being covered up.......... Like what Mr Saliba , what do you think it is .
Let me ask a question, how many of you were near the coast and heard a Boooooom on the horizon on a nice evening ! No clouds what so ever ! I noticed this on five occasions while fishing !

Mr d cini

Jun 13th 2011, 12:52

or a meteor that disintegrated midway in the air? such incidents have been reported elsewhere.

Mr Kevin J Vella

Jun 13th 2011, 09:21

not really no. the explosion like sound or sonic boom like sound (there was a tell tale sonic boom like cloud over the Dingli area for a short time at the time of the sound accompanied by a long rumbling noise of a jet) was not underwater. Sound shock waves in water would have not sounded the same on land. This appeared to be a land based or sky based noise ....

Andrew schembri

Jun 13th 2011, 08:32

Actually, if the jet is travelling as a speed greater than Mach 1 (supersonic) it would pass over you before the sound reaches you.

Mark Pace

Jun 12th 2011, 22:43

so out of 4000+ sorties now they decide well lets use up more fuel to get back home and break international air law by exceeding the sound barrier over a habitable zone?!

Libya's air defences are all shut (including most SAM installations) I see no reason for the possibility that it was an aircraft.

I was probably a covered up explosion

Mr Mark Cutajar

Jun 12th 2011, 23:20

Yeah but the sonic boom isn't loud enough to propagate to Dingli, Swieqi, Naxxar, Mosta and Mellieha.

Mr Henry Spiteri

Jun 13th 2011, 07:50

@ Tony Camilleri: To avoid radar from whom??

Joe Degiorgio

Jun 13th 2011, 09:32

Avoiding who's radar? They don't need to evade our radars, Maltese airspace is open in support of UN security council resolutions against Libya.

Mr Tony Camilleri

Jun 13th 2011, 10:01

Mr Henry Spiteri, Joe Degiorgio perhaps a test to see whether they can avoid our radar? Perhaps even their own radar? Who knows what and why?

Did you know that certain US Navy ships always berth in the same place in Grand Harbour to check whether the GPS satellites data readings are correct or whether they had drifted?

Did you know that one of the US Navy ships that has visited Malta a number of times is a Mobile Communications and Control Centre for the US Navy and also NATO?

Some things and reasons are never publicized to the general public and in most things there is a lot more than meets the eye.

Chris Bonnici

Jun 13th 2011, 07:50

With the transponder off, an aircraft will still be visible to primary radar (as long as its not a B2) Secondary "radar" receives data from the aircraft transponder and gets more info ( depending in what mode its operating in) from the aircraft.
The sonic boom is not an indication of an aircraft travelling at "twice the speed of sound" .... its an indication an aircraft is flying above the speed of sound depending an altitude...
The answer re if the sound heard was from a military aircraft is within the ATC

G. Cachia

Jun 12th 2011, 22:26

Sur Sciberras - Prosit u grazzi tal-kumment interessanti tieghek.

Xi haga li jien personalment ma kontx nafha u nassigurak li hafna huma bhali.

Mr Keith Muscat

Jun 13th 2011, 02:14

how intelligent you are...kliem tqil u hekk. well done!

Joe Degiorgio

Jun 13th 2011, 09:39

Skuzawni imma Mr Schiberras f' erbgha sentenzi qal zewg zbalji:
1. Transponder jibghat informazzjoni dwar l' ajruplan. Jekk ikun mitfi r- radar xorta jaqbdu. L' unika differenza tkun li jidher bhala tikka u ma jkollux informazjoni dettaljata dwaru hlief velocita, gholi u direzzjoni.
2. Is- "sonic boom" m' hemmx ghalfejn tkun ghaddej id- doppju tal- velocita tal- hoss biex tinstema. Malli oggett jaqbez il velocita tal- hoss (bejn wiehed u iehor 330 metru fis- sekonda) ikun kiser is- "sound barrier" u l' hoss jinstama.

Mr Carl Abela

Jun 13th 2011, 15:14

vra jista jkun u hekk nahseb jekk il-pulizija ma sabu xejn

Stephen Koludrovic

Jun 13th 2011, 07:37

Sorry Ray,
I doubt that they keep coins in their wallet, its probably 500 euro notes that they would carry.

Adele Mintoff

Jun 12th 2011, 22:56

LOL GOOD ONE!!!

Mr Simon Bonello

Jun 12th 2011, 23:45

lolll nice one :-)

Ginevra Alvarado

Jun 13th 2011, 06:57

LOL! Nice one hahaha.

Chantelle Mifsud

Jun 13th 2011, 08:11

he he good one

Steve Zammit

Jun 12th 2011, 23:19

Best comment of the day :)

Mr JC Sullivan

Jun 13th 2011, 07:34

Funny

caroline zarre

Jun 13th 2011, 08:20

good one @ james farrugia

Mr Joshua Attard

Jun 12th 2011, 21:10

this does not show all flight movements.. such as military ones

Jacki Portelli

Jun 12th 2011, 21:15

at if it was flying very low it would not show up on the radar.

Roberto Cassar

Jun 12th 2011, 22:45

No, Most Of The Military Traffic Is Not Shown.....But Sometimes I Tracked Some Air Force's Planes Like Tankers and Transport

Matt Borgde

Jun 12th 2011, 23:19

Fighter planes don't have an ADS-B transponder so you can't see them on that site.

Ray Pace

Jun 13th 2011, 07:37

For the record - Flight radar doesn't cover military jets but commercial airline jets.

Emanuel R. Ciantar

Jun 12th 2011, 21:34

@Gabriel Galea, I heard a jet plane going in the direction of the North, like you did, at the same time of the "explosion", and saw a white "trail" as well. However, I believe that the trail was not from that jet, because the noise from the jet was overhead - so probably the jet was even further north due to the slow speed of sound - whereas the blast was over the sea in the South/South West. The trail I saw was on the sea, in the direction where the blast came from, and it stretched for a short distance. So I suppose the trail could have come from an "object" that exploded in the sky while moving. I think NATO must have an explanation.

Roberto Cassar

Jun 12th 2011, 22:49

wHEN tHE Sonic boom Happens Moisture On The Wings Evaporates Thus Creating That 'Cloud like' Explosion and the 'cloud' is seen streched due to the very high velocity of the fighter and , the Contrail is seen a distance away from the plane...again....due to the high velocity!

Jacki Portelli

Jun 12th 2011, 21:04

seeing that police haven't found anything yet, it is bound to be a jet breaking the sound barrier

Yosef Scicluna

Jun 12th 2011, 20:34

Jet breaking the sound leave echo's..... I think is not the fact

Mr Charlo Seychell

Jun 12th 2011, 20:39

i thought exactly the same

Ms Donna Degaetano

Jun 12th 2011, 20:44

Would this cause window panes to shake because mine definately did? We.re not that far away from Dingli as we live in Rabat

Eric Camilleri

Jun 12th 2011, 20:46

Joshua I think yours is the most plausible explanation. I was in Mizieb, heard the "explosion" and then the high flying jet sound could be heard a little while later. In fact jokingly we were saying that we must have been bombarded. This video link of the Concorde sonic boom high up in the sky was exactly the same sound effect we heard however I could not see the jet trail but could hear the plane high up in the sky somewhere.

Yosef Scicluna

Jun 12th 2011, 20:56

check this link
http://www.flightradar24.com/?lat=36.10547788054944&lon=14.828476524353036&z=7

Mr Joshua Attard

Jun 12th 2011, 21:13

@ ms Donna...
Yes it very well could , even more if it was a low flying plane. If the police dont find anything .. then this would be a possible answer. All they have to do is check with the air traffic services to see if any military planes were allowed to pass through the airspace I guess.

Lisa Galea

Jun 13th 2011, 07:25

Yes Mr Attard, I live in Dingli and that is prciseley the sound I heard.
I wonder when Authorities will have some answers.

Mark Wattson

Jun 13th 2011, 07:54

@Yosef Scicluna

flightradar24.com will not show military aircraft !!!

Paul Mcalister

Jun 12th 2011, 20:45

if we had volcano's maybe -.-

Mr Jo Camm

Jun 12th 2011, 20:43

Probabbli splodiet ras xi parlamentari hawn Malta, ghax hawn hafna rjus qed jintefhu.

Steve Zammit

Jun 12th 2011, 23:19

How can you hear the bangs of the Zebbug feast from Bahar ic-Caghaq? Highly unlikely

Regarding Siggiewi...agreed but this noise is described as an ''explosion.'' The noise from the Zebbug feast were constant bangs like...Bum bum and bum with more bum bum after the bum!

Sabrina Zammit

Jun 12th 2011, 20:18

anka jiena

Stephen Koludrovic

Jun 12th 2011, 20:16

Yeah iut could be possible that a F 16 broke the sound barrier.

Mario Micallef

Jun 12th 2011, 20:19

yes, as far as I know there are two factories which manufacture or handle explosives, and are situated, inside the cliffs, so since no visible after effects were seen, could it have been internal, and God forbid, were there any people working there?I really hope not!!!

Paul Mcalister

Jun 12th 2011, 20:41

It is not Pulvich factory. We have been closed for 5 years so please do not post false information. i am also surprised that the news on TVM (filming at Dingli next to the factory) and first reports stated it was our factory.

Paul Mcalister

Jun 12th 2011, 20:44

mr Mario Micallef. The factory in the cliff face and factory up top both belong to our family. The factory in teh cliff face has not been used to manufacture explosives in over 25 years... Why all the speculation

Mr Alfred Grech

Jun 12th 2011, 19:56

That makes lots of sense and probably you are right. My wife also suspected that a big chunk of a cliff fell down but you may be right Kieron.

Stephen Forster

Jun 12th 2011, 20:08

It could have been a munition dropping off a plane and exploding in the sea, only way no smoke or debris spotted

Joan Muscat

Jun 12th 2011, 20:21

At San Gwann we heard the explosion but felt nothing. It could easily have been a jet breaking the sound barrier, Hope so. At least no one would have been hurt.

Kyra Pollacco

Jun 12th 2011, 19:58

I wouldn't be surprised, a given the disclosures going on globally I wouldn't find it funny.

angelo cilia

Jun 12th 2011, 20:36

What you mentioned Mr. Agius, happened off Cuba recently .

angelo cilia

Jun 12th 2011, 21:32

This also happened in Kokomo Indiana USA on April 16th 2008


"Kokomo Emergency responders from Howard and Tipton counties were mobilized late Wednesday after receiving many calls about a large explosion.

Dozens of residents reported hearing, feeling or seeing some kind of explosion near Kokomo about 10:30 p.m., but about midnight, a Tipton County Sheriff's Department dispatch official said police and fire crews still were searching for debris or other evidence of a blast.

One resident interviewed on the air by WTHR (Channel 13), The Indianapolis Star's news-gathering partner, said she felt her house shake violently and saw a fireball."

Other witness accounts varied from a blast to bright lights to a house-shaking rumble, officials said.

Mr Tony Gatt

Jun 12th 2011, 20:24

Mr. O'connor's explanation could be the best if it was heard in so many places without any damage found. I once heard Concord breaking the sound-barrier and it really was like an explosion, though usually this is a double bang.

Ms Dorianne M

Jun 12th 2011, 19:43

maybe illegal "factory" ?

Yanica Sant

Jun 12th 2011, 20:12

Thank you Mr Delicata. Journalism at its best.

Karl Rueth

Jun 12th 2011, 20:24

Din ma kinitx spluzjoni min kamra tan-nar , ghaliex kull spluzjoni irridu nassocjawa mal-piroteknici Maltin , li jsebbhu is-smewwiet f`dawn ix-xhur ....

Maria Pace Gasan

Jun 12th 2011, 20:22

MAF...there are no firework factories in Dingli.