What caused the Tunguska explosion in 1908?

What caused the Tunguska explosion in 1908?

In the early morning of June 30, 1908, a massive explosion flattened entire forests in a remote region of Eastern Siberia along the Tunguska River. Khrennikov and co say the explosion was caused by an asteroid that grazed the Earth, entering the atmosphere at a shallow angle and then passing out again into space.

How big was the Tunguska blast?

830 square miles
Bottom line: The Tunguska explosion on June 30, 1908, was the largest asteroid impact in recorded history. It flattened 830 square miles (2150 sq km) of Siberian forest. Researchers are preparing for future Tunguska-sized events.

What if the Tunguska meteor hit a city?

Tunguska flattened 770 square miles of forest. That’s larger than the five boroughs, which is just under 500 square miles. So, we would probably be looking at almost every structure in New York City being flattened and almost every one of the 8 million people in New York being killed.

Where did the Tunguska explosion occur?

Tunguska event, enormous explosion that is estimated to have occurred at 7:14 am plus or minus one minute on June 30, 1908, at an altitude of 5–10 km (15,000–30,000 feet), flattening some 2,000 square km (500,000 acres) and charring more than 100 square km of pine forest near the Podkamennaya Tunguska River in central …

Was Tunguska a nuclear explosion?

1) The Tunguska explosion may have been a thermonuclear explosion in the air after the asteroid entered the atmosphere, and the nuclear explosion may have been triggered by the high temperature and high pressure caused by a rock burst of the asteroid; the rock burst is triggered by the high temperature caused by the …

Where did the Tunguska event occur?

What would happen if Tunguska impacted?

It won’t hit the planet, but if it did, the collision would create an impact large enough to level 80 million trees — or the entire city of Washington, D.C., and its suburbs. Scientists know this because an impact by an object the size of Friday’s flyby asteroid has happened in human memory.

How big is the Apophis asteroid?

606.96′99942 Apophis / Radius

What hit Siberia in 1908?

Tunguska event
Tunguska event, enormous explosion that is estimated to have occurred at 7:14 am plus or minus one minute on June 30, 1908, at an altitude of 5–10 km (15,000–30,000 feet), flattening some 2,000 square km (500,000 acres) and charring more than 100 square km of pine forest near the Podkamennaya Tunguska River in central …

What will happen to Earth in 2029?

On Friday, April 13, 2029, Earth will experience a dramatic close encounter with the asteroid 99942 Apophis. The 1,120 feet (340-meter) wide object will pass within just 19,000 miles (31,000 km) of our home planet — a distance that brings it closer than most geostationary satellites.