Tunguska event

1908MajorContested

A space rock explodes over Siberia and flattens about 2,000 square kilometers of forest. It is the largest impact event in recorded history.

Contested history

Consensus: On 30 June 1908 a cosmic body exploded several kilometers above Siberia and flattened about 2,000 square kilometers of forest.

Airburst of a stony asteroidEstablished

The tree-fall pattern, lack of a crater and microscopic debris fit an object tens of meters wide exploding in the air.

Airburst of a comet fragmentMinority view

A comet would explain the lack of large fragments, but most modern models favor a stony asteroid.

Alien spacecraft, black hole or antimatterDebunked

These ideas lack physical evidence and conflict with the observed blast pattern.

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