Question by goo_head_83: What caused the fireball in Tunguska, Siberia in 1908?
I heard that scientist speculate that it was a meteorite but they cannot prove that it was due to a lack of evidence. Is there any evidence showing this was cause by a meteorite or something else? Is the meteorite theory still the most accepted?
Answers and Views:
Answer by SPS
About five months ago, I read a detailed article suggesting it might have been a large piece of a comet fragment.
Read all the answers in the comments.
What do you think?
michael c says
It was most likely a meteorite that exploded in the atmosphere before it could impact on the surface. Experiments have managed to recreate the arrangement of trees as they were found at Tunguska by simulating an explosion at altitude. That to me is the most likely explanation.
quizzard123 says
For me, the most likely explanation is a comet fragment, since such an object would leave little in the way of debris, essentially evaporating as the gases in the comet head heated.
Just for the record, it was a vast explosion, there was no reports of a 'fireball'. If there had been, scientists would have quickly determined that it was a meteor.
socialdeevolution says
There is a general lack of evidence to really support much of anything, however the fact that there was no impact and the object exploded before impact may imply a stony meteorite. Since they have lower density and are more porous than the metallic variety, they tend to be structurally weaker and could explode because of trapped gasses heated by atmospheric drag.
Belgariad says
That's because the meteorite exploded a few miles before it hit the earth. But the shortwave from it went all the way to the U.S. And when photos were taken of the site a couple years after it looked a lot like what happened at Hiroshima.
grayure says
A large object collided with Earth, probably a comet or an asteroid, part of a well-known comet which still orbits.