Chelyabinsk is a large city of the Russian Federation, a scientific, industrial and cultural center of the Urals. This is a city of working people, famous for its industrial power and industrial records. But on February 15, 2013, the city became famous all over the world after a meteorite fell in Chelyabinsk.
What really happened?
At about 9:30 local time, residents of not only Chelyabinsk, but also remote areas observed in the sky a rapid flight of a brightly luminous unidentified object, behind which a powerful jet trail stretched. Then the shock wave swept, bringing a lot of destruction, from which more than 1500 residents of the city suffered.
A state of emergency has been declared in the city, the forces of the Ministry of Emergency Situations, soldiers, and police have been sent to the alleged site of the fall of an unknown body. Scientists and curious people also moved there. Each channel of the Russian media sent its reporters to the scene, everyone wanted to get pictures and fragments of a celestial body.
This event shocked not only the locals. WorriedNASA, European Space Agency. Astronomers from the Czech Republic, Sweden, France, Great Britain, Canada, and America became interested in the event. A whole year has passed, but the truth about the Chelyabinsk meteorite continues to disturb both the population and scientists.
Restoring the chronicle of events
Winter morning started as usual. People went to work, having identified children in schools and kindergartens, students went to study.
In the sky at 9:23 the inhabitants of Chelyabinsk noticed a strange flash and unusual stripes, like from a jet plane. After a couple of minutes, each person felt the trembling of the soil, the whole of Chelyabinsk shuddered. The explosion of the meteorite caused a shock wave that swept over a radius of several kilometers. Trees fell, windows were shattered in buildings, car alarms went off, and a wall was blown off a zinc plant.
Guess and truth
Versions of the phenomenon were different, sometimes fantastic. Someone decided that these were enemy missiles, some suggested a plane crash, there were those who believed in an attack on the planet by aliens.
In fact, a large meteorite fell to the ground near the city of Chelyabinsk, the second largest after the Tunguska meteorite that fell in Eastern Siberia in June 1908.
February 2013 - "space guest" entered the planet's atmosphere at an acute angle of about 20°. According to experts, at an altitude of about 20-25 km, the meteorite broke into pieces. Debris hit the ground with great speed.
Physical characteristics of the "guest from outer space"
PoExperts, including NASA experts, estimate that the Chelyabinsk meteorite weighed 10 tons and had a diameter of at least 17 m and entered the Earth's atmosphere at a speed of 18 km/h.
The flight of the meteorite after entering our atmosphere lasted no more than 40 seconds. The space body began to explode at an altitude of 20 kilometers. From the explosion with a capacity of about 470 kilotons (this is 30 times more than during the explosion of the bomb in Hiroshima), numerous fragments and pieces were formed, which rapidly crashed into the Chelyabinsk lands. The bright light from the fall was visible over long distances. It was observed in the Kurgan, Sverdlovsk, Tyumen regions, in Kazakhstan and Bashkortostan. The farthest point where traces of the flight of a meteorite were visible was the Samara region, located 750 km from Chelyabinsk.
The consequences of a meteorite fall
When a meteorite fell in Chelyabinsk, it caused a series of shock waves. Many trees were felled in the city, about 3,000 buildings and structures were damaged. In many houses, windows were shattered by the shock wave, communication was lost for a while. The strongest blow fell on the Satka region. A zinc plant was partially destroyed there.
Many asked where the meteorite fell in Chelyabinsk and how dangerous it is. An emergency situation was declared in the city, all units of the Ministry of Emergency Situations were sent to the scene. A conversation was held with the population, the panic was suppressed, and they tried to keep the situation under control.
In addition to Chelyabinsk, the following districts of the region suffered: Korkino, Yemanzhelinsk, Yuzhnouralsk, Kopeysk and the villageEtkul.
According to scientists, if the meteorite exploded 5-6 km below, the consequences would be much more sad.
Crash site
Each celestial body is of great interest from a scientific point of view. To study the nature of the origin of the meteorite, its chemical composition, it was necessary to find as many fragments and pieces of a celestial body as possible. For this, it was important to establish the exact place where the meteorite fell in Chelyabinsk.
Two main parts were quickly found in the Chebarkul region. The third main fragment was found in the Zlatoust region. But the fourth had to be looked for. It was believed that he fell in the area of \u200b\u200bLake Chebarkul. The locals, who were fishing on the lake in the morning, confirmed that there was a space stone and fell into the lake itself. Eyewitnesses said that the impact caused a huge wave. The water rose 3-4 meters.
Choose name
After the fall of the meteorite, 2 variants of its name were proposed - Chebarkulsky or Chelyabinsk. In favor of the first name, arguments were made that the main fragment fell into Lake Chebarkul near the settlement of Chebarkul. However, supporters of the name "Chelyabinsk" said that the meteorite brought the greatest destruction to the regional center. As a revenge, he should be named Chelyabinsk.
Academician E. Galimov, head of the Vernadsky Institute of Geochemistry and Analytical Chemistry, announced that the meteorite will be included in the International Catalog under the name"Chelyabinsk".
Collecting meteorite parts
Hundreds of small debris were found at the impact sites. Special expeditions were sent out to search. Only near Lake Chebarkul, three kilograms of meteorite stones were collected. The search continued for more than six months. In August, news was received that a local resident had found a piece weighing 3.5 kg near the village of Timiryazevsky.
But the biggest interest was the huge piece that fell into the lake. Its weight, according to preliminary estimates, was 300-400 kg, it went deep into the bottom silt. Local authorities allocated 3 million rubles for its raising.
A huge piece in August 2013 was removed from the bottom of the lake. His weight was 600 kg. After examination by scientists and a verdict on radioactive and chemical safety, the fragment of the meteorite was transferred to the local museum of local lore.
Mineral composition
After a while, the researchers explained which meteorite fell in Chelyabinsk. The space object is an ordinary chondrite. Olivine, iron, sulfites, magnetic pyrites and other complex minerals were found in its composition. The Chelyabinsk meteorite contains traces of titanic iron ore and inclusions of native copper, which is unusual for chondrites. The cracks in the body are filled with a vitreous substance with an admixture of silicates. The thickness of the melting crust is 1 mm.
Scientists have established that the age of the parent body, from which a piece broke off, which later became the Chelyabinsk meteorite, is at least 4 billion (!) years. "Our" piece before falling to Earth for some timewandered in outer space, colliding with other cosmic bodies…
Scared? Anxious…
Scientists around the world are diligently studying the presented material until today. Many knowledgeable experts have suggested that this is not just a meteorite, but a harbinger of an asteroid. Some even believed that a large asteroid would soon arrive on Earth, and then the destruction would be catastrophic. But Anatoly Zaitsev, director of the Center for Planetary Protection of the Earth from Asteroids, explained that this was just a theory. And he assured that nothing threatens the population of the planet, and the celestial bodies flying by are closely watched.
Life after the meteorite fall
The meteorite that fell in Chelyabinsk attracted the attention of the masses, caused a lot of controversy and conjecture. Conversations and rumors around the event do not subside to this day. The city near Chebarkul Lake became known to the whole world. Scientists went here: geochemists, physicists, astronomers. Everyone wanted to see with their own eyes a messenger from space.
The fall of the meteorite in Chelyabinsk has become profitable in terms of tourism. Andrey Orlov, the owner of a major travel agency, says that shortly after the event, calls began to arrive from America and Japan. Someone wanted an individual tour, many wanted to organize a group trip to the site of the fall of the famous meteorite.
Demand gives rise to an invitation, which is why all guidebooks have added a zone called "Chebarkul meteorite" to the significant places of the Chelyabinsk region. Price for a trip tonow historical lake varies from 5,000 to 20,000 rubles.
There is a blessing in disguise: at the official level
The Chelyabinsk authorities, with the help of the event of February 15, 2013, decided to go down in the history of the Olympic Games. They created several precious metal medals with meteorite inserts. Such an award will be received by each athlete who takes a prize-winning place in competitions held on February 15th. Everything that remains unused from the fragments found will be distributed to Russian museums and private collections.
Some especially large exhibits were collected and the corresponding documentation was prepared. With this material, a tour of the museums of the Russian Federation will be made. Every inhabitant of the country should see a piece of a meteorite. In Moscow, the demonstration took place on January 17, 2014. Many materials will replenish the collection of the famous Moscow planetarium. Several thematic stands and posters have been developed for this event.
Brands are born
While the rescuers were clearing up the consequences of the catastrophe caused by the meteorite that fell in Chelyabinsk, many entrepreneurs did not waste time and actively used the fall of a celestial body for commercial purposes. Andrey Orlov, the mayor of the Chebarkul city district, distinguished himself with an excellent reaction in this area. Here, with his light hand, a competition for the most interesting brand name was organized. The winner was promised a piece of a meteorite as a prize. Under interesting names such as "Chebarkul meteor", "Uralmeteorite", "Chelyabinsk - the capital of the meteorite", "Meteorite in Chelyabinsk" and "Che!", began to produce confectionery and spirits.
Strike while the iron is hot
Various firms began to produce clothes with the appropriate print, mugs, plates and even puzzles. First, among the locals, and then among the inhabitants of all Russia, T-shirts with a comic inscription became popular: "Nothing invigorates so much as a meteorite in the morning!" It is worth noting a very original idea of the Chelyabinsk perfume company. She decided to create an unusual perfume called the Chebarkul meteorite. Perfumers say that the fragrance of this "cosmic object" will include stone and metal components.
Ordinary residents of the Urals also showed enterprise. The meteorite in Chelyabinsk did its job. Photos of him scattered with great speed on the Internet. Thousands of requests per minute testified to how many there are who want to see the crash site and the celestial object itself. One resourceful resident of the Ural town sold a microwave oven on the Internet market, which burned out under the influence of a shock wave. An unknown American bought such a strange thing, but for this purchase he asked to send a couple of local newspapers with news about the meteorite fall in Chelyabinsk. Some exhibited shards of glass that exploded from the explosion when they fell. And all these things were snapped up by strange collectors. Pieces of the meteorite itself were especially prized. The lowest price for a fragment started from 10,000 rubles, the highestamounted to 10,000,000 rubles. The police faced natural scammers who passed off ordinary stones as a celestial object.
"Healing" properties of the meteorite
Hundreds of residents came to Chebarkul Lake and dreamed of finding not only an expensive stone, but also a “healing” one. Charlatans - magicians and sorcerers - with the help of such fragments removed damage and treated for the most terrible diseases, cast out evil spirits. Entire legends and myths were invented about the influence of the "cosmic guest" on a person, depending on the sign of the zodiac. And how many amulets with a piece of this body have already spread all over the world! The meteorite was credited with simply magical properties, although in reality it does not have any healing power.
Interesting facts about the fall of the Chelyabinsk meteorite
A meteorite fell in Chelyabinsk, which made a lot of noise all over the world. Scientists managed to once again study the cosmic body, and someone just made good money on this event. It is worth noting some interesting points and facts about the Chelyabinsk meteorite:
- The largest piece of meteorite fell to the bottom of Lake Chebarkul.
- The Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations claimed to have informed residents about the upcoming event via SMS, but this turned out to be a lie.
- Many TV channels showed not a meteorite crater, but a gas crater in Turkmenistan.
- Many residents of Chelyabinsk deliberately broke their windows, simulating the effects of the blast wave. They wanted to receive new plastic windows from the state as material assistance to the victims.
- The diameter of the crater from the fall of the meteorite was 6 meters.
- 470 kilotons of energy released from the explosion of a celestial body.
- Scientists have calculated that a meteorite of this size falls to Earth once every hundred years.
- It is believed that the meteorite went unnoticed due to the fact that it was flying from the direction of the sun. That is why the telescopes did not fix the approaching celestial body.
