[meteorite-list] re: Vitim event

From: Marco Langbroek <marco.langbroek_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu Apr 22 10:21:08 2004
Message-ID: <00a501c353b2$3a0b2980$6cc9ea3e_at_HAL>

In echo of Ron Baalke, I also remain sceptical with regard to the
Vitim/Bodiabo "airburst" event. If you look at the pictures at
http://www.neplaneta.ru/press_konf_aif.shtml , then some show a superficial
resemblance to the well known Tunguska pictures; but on others, it would
appear that the area of this tree damage is very localized and small, not at
all continuous & of Tunguska character. And then there is the apparent hughe
mismatch
between the 2 Kt DOD energy estimate of the Vitim bolide (which appears to
be a genuine bolide indeed, to avoid misunderstanding), which is comparable
to the Tagish Lake bolide, and the energy release needed to cause the
kind of damage claimed to be present. Also, I want to point out, that as I
understood it from Andrei Olkhovatov's coverage of the news the past weeks
on meteorobs mailing list, the organization Kosmopoisk researching the event
(and organizing these news releases in the Russian press) might actually be
somewhat pseudo-scientific, doing UFO research. Some of the elements in
the story, like claims of elevated tritium levels, 'sharp increase in the
radioactive background measured on the day of the event' (reported in the
initial Kosmopoisk news message on June 12), strange long-lasting
glows seen from a distance days after the event that were 'not aurora', and
'strange bitter taste of water' make me highly suspicious, it is the kind of
talk we usually hear associated with crop-circles, alledged UFO landing
spots etc., and not the kind of thing you expect in association with genuine
impact events (of whatever size). So far, I haven't seen any acknowledged
impact expert speak out on the Vitim event (except for David Morrison, who
was highly sceptical in NEO-news of 7 July) and untill that happens, I
remain highly sceptical. I think this might very well be a well done news
scam of the Loch Ness monster and a new sighting of Elvis type. If you strip
the story to its bare details, you might end up with thinking of a genuine
fireball apparition, a non-related forest fire, and a group of
overenthousiast and not
too knowlegable 'researchers' (you might for example have noted the not
quite accurate statements on meteorites, although this can be due to a poor
press recapitulation of the story) that want to see bizarre things in
natural phenomena - and get good press coverage for their exciting stories.

I think Andrei Olkhovatov's cautious suggestion on meteorobs to check high
resolution satellite images whether the spots with forest damage really
appeared on the date of the bolide, or were present earlier, or only later,
is a very wise one.

- Marco

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Marco Langbroek

marco.langbroek_at_wanadoo.nl
meteorites_at_dmsweb.org
http://home.wanadoo.nl/marco.langbroek

"What seest thou else
 In the dark backward and abysm of time?"

                            William Shakespeare
                            The Tempest act I scene 2
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Received on Sat 26 Jul 2003 04:07:28 PM PDT