The Siberian orange snow of 2007 was an anomalous phenomenon that occurred in early February 2007. Beginning on 31 January 2007, an orange-tinted snow fell across an area of in
Omsk Oblast,
Siberian Federal District
Siberian Federal District (russian: Сиби́рский федера́льный о́круг, ''Sibirsky federalny okrug'') is one of the eight federal districts of Russia. Its population was 17,178,298 according to the 2010 Census, livi ...
, Russia, approximately from Moscow, as well as into the neighboring
Tomsk and
Tyumen Oblasts. It was unclear what caused the orange snow. Speculation ranged from pollutants to a sandstorm in neighboring
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...
.
Description
The orange snow was malodorous, oily to the touch, and reported to contain four times the normal level of
iron
Iron () is a chemical element with Symbol (chemistry), symbol Fe (from la, Wikt:ferrum, ferrum) and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 element, group 8 of the periodic table. It is, Abundanc ...
. Though mostly orange, some of the snow was red or yellow. It affected an area with about 27,000 residents. It was originally speculated that it was caused by
industrial pollution
Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into the natural environment that cause adverse change. Pollution can take the form of any substance (solid, liquid, or gas) or energy (such as radioactivity, heat, sound, or light). Pollutants, the ...
, a rocket launch or even a nuclear accident. It was later determined that the snow was non-toxic; however, people in the region were advised not to use the snow or allow animals to feed upon it.
Colored snow is uncommon in Russia but not unheard of, as there have been many cases of black,
blue,
green and red snowfall.
Possible causes
This orange snow may have been caused by a heavy sandstorm in neighboring
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...
. Tests on the snow revealed numerous sand and clay dust particles, which were blown into Russia in the upper stratosphere.
The speculation that the coloration was caused by a
rocket
A rocket (from it, rocchetto, , bobbin/spool) is a vehicle that uses jet propulsion to accelerate without using the surrounding air. A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Rocket engines work entirely fr ...
launch from
Baikonur in Kazakhstan
was later dismissed, as the last launch before the event took place on 18 January 2007.
Russia's environmental watchdog originally claimed that the colored snowfall was caused by industrial pollution, such as "waste from metallurgical plants."
It stated that the snow contained four times the normal quantities of acids,
nitrates, and iron. However, it would be nearly impossible to pinpoint a culprit if pollution were the cause, as there are various industries nearby, such as the city of
Omsk, which is a center of the
oil industry in Russia.
See also
*
References
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Siberian Orange Snow, 2007
Siberian Orange Snow, 2007
Anomalous weather
Omsk Oblast
History of Siberia
Snow