Mysterious giant craters in Siberia: Sinkholes or underground explosions? RT’s special report explores the phenomenon

Giant round craters seemingly appear out of nowhere in the remote areas of Western Siberia, mesmerizing and, sometimes, scaring nomadic reindeer herders and scientists alike. 

One such crater opened up just last year, while more than a dozen others took several decades to form, researchers say. Some remain vast cavities, going as deep as 30 meters (98.5 feet). Others become lakes. 

An anthropologist who studies the culture of the local Nenets people says she had witnessed a spontaneous formation of one such lake in the tundra. “There was no lake, but larch trees. One night, after loud bangs, it was like an upside-down saucer, with the trees on the bottom and the roots on the surface,” she says, adding that several days later a lake was formed, which is now considered sacred by locals.

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