The 1908 Tunguska event in data of the nearest weather station

Abstract

This paper is a continuation of a series of works, devoted to various aspects of the 1908 Tunguska event. In this paper data is discussed from a weather station in the settlement of Kezma. This weather station was the nearest one to the epicenter of the 1908 Tunguska event. The station was about 215 km southwards from the epicenter. Also eyewitness accounts from Kezhma and some places on the Angara River are considered. The paper demonstrates the diversity of optical manifestations of the 1908 Tunguska event reported from Kezhma and its surroundings. A note by the observer of the weather station in Kezhma, concerning, in particular, the appearance of the two huge fiery circles is very important. The weather log of the weather station shows that the Tunguska event occurred during the sharp increase in cloud cover and deteriorating weather. At the beginning of July, rains and thunderstorms, including hail, began according to the weather log. In the opinion of the author, the data of the Kezhma weather station and the eyewitness accounts are in agreement with the geophysical interpretation of the 1908 Tunguska event. In any case, the meteorological factor is an important aspect of the Tunguska event, and so it deserves detailed research.