Scientists investigating what caused a massive crater in Siberia

Scientists investigating what caused a massive crater in Siberia
(Image credit: YouTube/Bulka)

A crater in northern Siberia thought to be 262 feet wide has caught scientists off guard, and questioning just how the enormous hole came to be.

Aerial footage of the crater in the Yamal area was posted online last week, and scientists from the Center for the Study of the Arctic and the Cryosphere Institute of the Russian Academy of Scientists headed to the site on Wednesday. As NPR reports, it looks as though rock and earth exploded from the inside of the hole, and it could have been caused by a gas explosion (Yamal is home to the largest natural gas reservoir in Russia), a meteorite, or an eruption of underground ice. The internet, of course, is convinced it's the work of aliens.

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.