Siberian crater expanded amidst explosive sound, glowing lights

Siberia is no stranger to massive mysterious craters — we've reported on them several times over past years. Now, according to local reports, a crater discovered back in 2013 has expanded, and it came alongside a couple other mysterious events. Locals in the region reported hearing a loud explosion dozens of kilometers away and seeing a glowing light of some sort in the sky around the area of the sinkhole.

Before this most recent event, the crater was said to have expanded 15 times from the size it was upon its discovery in 2013. Because this newest expansion is still new, scientists have yet to reexamine the crater and determine how much larger it got. Judging by local reports, however, it appears the expansion could have been a violent one, with residents reporting hearing an explosion as far away as 100 kilometers.

The crater is located in the Krasnoyarsk region, specifically on the Taimyr peninsula. It is about 273 miles/440km from other craters that have formed in recent times, the number of which is now up in the dozens. Speaking to the Siberian Times, Dr. Vladimir Epifanov said, "There is verbal information that residents of nearby villages — at a distance of 70 to 100 kilometers — heard a sound like an explosion, and one of them watched a clear glow in the sky. It was about one month after the Chelyabinsk meteorite."

Residents are said to have assumed the explosion and light was caused by another meteorite falling from the sky, which isn't unusual in that region. However, that wasn't the case and there's no definite cause for the two events, though some assume it was either the fissure growing larger or an explosion coming within it. One report states that ice and debris were found scattered around the land near the crater, suggesting an explosion from within. Methane trapped underground and released by melting ice is one possible explanation.

As it stands, researchers anticipate the crater collapsing in on itself and merging with a nearby lake as a result.