Probably only the deaf did not hear the name of a meteorite that fell in Siberia in the USSR. This unique event occurred more than a hundred years ago, on the thirtieth of June 1908. At about seven in the morning that day, the locals saw something inexplicable in the sky. True, all materials related to this incident were classified. Perhaps that is why sometimes the most incredible stories about him, not confirmed by facts, have spread among the people.
Scientists came up with the name of the meteorite that fell in Siberia in the USSR, based on the place of its landing. A cosmic body fell in Eastern Siberia, in the region of the Podkamennaya Tunguska River. Today it is the Evenki district in the Krasnoyarsk Territory. Therefore, a meteorite today is known to science as Tunguska.
As eyewitnesses of the incident itself described, at first a dazzling ball-car appeared in the sky, which moved northwest from the southeast. His flight was accompanied by sounds that resembled the sound of thunder during a thunderstorm. A large meteorite was visible within a radius of eight hundred kilometers, and after itself it left a dust trail that persisted for several hours.
Light phenomena ended in a super-powerful explosion at an altitude of about seven to ten kilometers. His energy was equal to the explosions of two thousand nuclear bombs, similar to those that were dropped on Hiroshima. In TNT, this is from ten to forty megatons. Fortunately, this territory is almost deserted. The only village of Vanavara is located here, and also during the fall in the taiga few Evenks nomads hunted.
Like all meteorites that fell to the ground, Tungusky tumbled down trees in a forest about a radius of forty kilometers, both people and animals suffered. Further, a fire broke out from light radiation, which covered an area equal to two thousand square kilometers.
The name of the meteorite that fell in Siberia in the USSR is today associated with a global catastrophe. After all, an explosive air wave circled the globe. In Siberian villages, the soil and buildings shook, glass cracked in the windows, objects flew from the shelves, people fell from their feet. In all corners of the Northern Hemisphere, unusual atmospheric and optical phenomena were observed for several days, visible around the clock.
The first researcher of the Tunguska catastrophe Leonid Kulik in 1927 expressed the opinion that it was a large iron meteorite. However, he did not find a single fragment of the cosmic body. This allowed other scientists to hypothesize that an ice comet, an alien space ship, and giant ball lightning fell in Siberia . Other opinions were also expressed, saying that it was an unsuccessful experiment by the physicist Nikola Tesla, a black hole, a laser signal from an extraterrestrial civilization, and so on.
The USSR Academy of Sciences carefully studied the incident, equipped expeditions, and conducted aerial photography of the crash site. Amateurs and enthusiasts often joined professional scientists. However, fragments of a body that fell in the area of the Podkamennaya Tunguska have not yet been officially discovered.
The name of the meteorite that fell in Siberia in the USSR today means a phenomenon that has not been completely studied. In 1995, at the epicenter of a hundred-year-old explosion, a state nature reserve of the Russian Federation was established.