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© Copyright 2000, Jim Loy
On June 30, 1908, an explosion occurred in the air above a swampy area near the Stony Tunguska River, an unpopulated part of Siberia. The explosion (equivalent to about 10 megatons of TNT) was heard thousands of miles away. Eventually, an expedition found hundreds of square kilometers of flattened forest, radiating from ground zero. Apparently the height above ground was determined to be less than 10 km. No crater was found. No debris or radiation was found. The explosion, called the Tunguska Event, remained somewhat mysterious. Scientists theorized an icy comet, because there was no debris. UFO freaks theorized an exploding space ship. Recently, tiny pieces which suggest a stony meteorite have been found in the area.