Also probably cover for the underground explosions that took out the data centers. So.....the plot thickens. I love this movie.

Agreed, the barn was a symptom I think, maybe unintentional. On the underground data center: if Q says "massive" then it is likely fucking massive – the scale of things we can barely comprehend aren't expressed by Q in hyperbole, IMO.

So however it happened it's likely the actual explosions covered a much larger subterranean area or even a complete different area vertically than where the barn was located. Again, that was likely a path of least resistance and an entrance of sorts. That explosion must have been...mighty.