May 25, 2025 1:51 PM PT 16 Copied! A sonic boom was heard across Los Angeles as a SpaceX cargo vessel lit up the night sky. Advertisement Some thought it was a seismic event, others an explosion, still others that its source was an episode of the television series “Andor” on their flatscreen or an intruder on the roof. “I thought my fish tank blew up,” said Trent McGee, 38, of Orange, who was lying in bed watching “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” when he felt the boom. After rushing to see that his 360-gallon aquarium was intact and his porcupinefish and other exotics were unharmed, he checked Reddit to find out the source of the noise. “I wish I knew the sonic boom was coming because I would have gone outside to get a better experience,” he said. Sonic booms have become a source of consternation for people living near Vandenberg Space Force Base in Santa Barbara County, where officials with SpaceX and the U.S. Space Force have acknowledged that their rocket launches and landings are causing the regular rattles. “We get woken up a couple times a week,” said Brooke Heflin, 37, of Camarillo. “Right when you’re getting into a deep sleep it’s like a big boom — the walls shake, the windows shake, the dogs start barking. You wake up to an explosion, basically.” Advertisement Last year, military officials rejected calls to reduce sonic booms coming from SpaceX rockets in the area, which have been increasing in frequency. Musk’s agency said it plans to launch more than 90 rockets from the base by 2026. “When you’re awakened in the middle of the night, your heart starts racing — oh my God, what is it?” Heflin said. “And then your mind finally becomes clear: It’s SpaceX again. And then you have to go back to sleep.” More to Read