Space
Siberia’s Mysterious Crater Grows In Size, Formation Linked To Bizarre Explosion In Sky
Sam D
First Posted: Jun 10, 2016 05:50 AM EDT
A gigantic crater in Russia's Siberia made news when it mysteriously appeared in a remote region of the Taimyr Peninsula in 2013. Researchers came up with various suggestions and theories to explain the crater's formation in the past three years, and the reasons were as varied as effects of geological processes to stray missiles and aliens. Now, another angle has reportedly been added to the host of explanations. Apparently, one of the residents who live close to the huge hole witnessed a clear glow in the sky before the crater mysteriously appeared.
In the three years since its baffling formation, the 330 feet deep crater has grown 15 times its original size, now measuring approximately 230 feet (as per the last survey) compared to the initial 13 feet. Called the Deryabinsky crevice, when the crater first emerged, it nearly gulped up a group of reindeer herders. Interestingly, the crater is located 300 hundred miles away from numerous other newly formed enormous holes on the Yamal peninsula, an area which is referred to as the "end of the world" by the locals. The crater is now the site of a lake, which formed once its permafrost melted and the walls caved in.
Now previously unheard reports, which could be linked to the cause of the crater, are emerging. "There is verbal information that residents of nearby villages - at a distance of 70-100 km - heard a sound like an explosion, and one of them watched a clear glow in the sky. It was about one month after the Chelyabinsk meteorite," said Dr Vladimir Epifanov. The inhabitants of the areas suggest an exploding space object; however experts do not share the same theory.
One of the most popular theories linked to the bizarre hole is an occurrence known as pingo, which happens after there is a subsurface formation of ice that has been covered by land, once the ice melts a hole forms in place of the ice. Another explanation forwarded by scientists was that the crater is a result of an underground methane explosion, due to the area being rich in natural gas which could have reacted when exposed to salt and water. Some researchers feel that a meteorite caused the crater, however this theory has been ruled aside because meteorite collisions apparently don't end up resembling the Deryabinsky.
As of now, there is no confirmed reason that could be the cause of the strange Siberian crater according to reports. Statements like, "It is not like the work of men, but it also doesn't look like natural formation," don't help either and nor is there a confirmed answer for the baffling glow in the sky seen by residents.
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First Posted: Jun 10, 2016 05:50 AM EDT
A gigantic crater in Russia's Siberia made news when it mysteriously appeared in a remote region of the Taimyr Peninsula in 2013. Researchers came up with various suggestions and theories to explain the crater's formation in the past three years, and the reasons were as varied as effects of geological processes to stray missiles and aliens. Now, another angle has reportedly been added to the host of explanations. Apparently, one of the residents who live close to the huge hole witnessed a clear glow in the sky before the crater mysteriously appeared.
In the three years since its baffling formation, the 330 feet deep crater has grown 15 times its original size, now measuring approximately 230 feet (as per the last survey) compared to the initial 13 feet. Called the Deryabinsky crevice, when the crater first emerged, it nearly gulped up a group of reindeer herders. Interestingly, the crater is located 300 hundred miles away from numerous other newly formed enormous holes on the Yamal peninsula, an area which is referred to as the "end of the world" by the locals. The crater is now the site of a lake, which formed once its permafrost melted and the walls caved in.
Now previously unheard reports, which could be linked to the cause of the crater, are emerging. "There is verbal information that residents of nearby villages - at a distance of 70-100 km - heard a sound like an explosion, and one of them watched a clear glow in the sky. It was about one month after the Chelyabinsk meteorite," said Dr Vladimir Epifanov. The inhabitants of the areas suggest an exploding space object; however experts do not share the same theory.
One of the most popular theories linked to the bizarre hole is an occurrence known as pingo, which happens after there is a subsurface formation of ice that has been covered by land, once the ice melts a hole forms in place of the ice. Another explanation forwarded by scientists was that the crater is a result of an underground methane explosion, due to the area being rich in natural gas which could have reacted when exposed to salt and water. Some researchers feel that a meteorite caused the crater, however this theory has been ruled aside because meteorite collisions apparently don't end up resembling the Deryabinsky.
As of now, there is no confirmed reason that could be the cause of the strange Siberian crater according to reports. Statements like, "It is not like the work of men, but it also doesn't look like natural formation," don't help either and nor is there a confirmed answer for the baffling glow in the sky seen by residents.
See Now: NASA's Juno Spacecraft's Rendezvous With Jupiter's Mammoth Cyclone