The Why Files: Operation Podcast - 101: Tesla's Most Destructive Weapon | The Tunguska Event: Comet Impact or Death Ray Experiment?

Episode Date: March 3, 2023

On June 30th, 1908, a mysterious explosion shook the remote Siberian region of Tunguska. The blast flattened 80 million trees across 800 square miles. Every plant, every animal, every insect in the blast radius was vaporized. The shockwave was felt as far away as England. It looked like a comet impact, yet, no crater was found and no debris was discovered. Scientists still can't explain what happened. But... at that exact moment, on the other side of the world, Nikola Telsa was conducting his latest experiment: transmitting massive amounts of electricity through the atmosphere. Tesla activated the generators in his lab and fired up Wardenclyffe Tower for one final, dramatic test: and sent *millions of volts* of electricity into the sky. After the test was complete, Telsa looked at the readings on his equipment and said: "Oh no." --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thewhyfiles/support

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I got a packed calendar today. I'm sorry about him. Anyway, check out Spotify for Podcasters. It's free, no catch, and a packed calendar today. I'm sorry about him. Anyway, check out Spotify for podcasters. It's free, no catch, and you could start today. Are we done? We're done, but you need to check your attitude. Excuse me, but I don't have all day to sit here and talk about Spotify. This would go a lot faster if you would just let me get through it. This episode of the Y-Files is brought to you by Private Internet Access. On June 30th, 1908, a mysterious explosion shook the remote Siberian region of Tunguska.

The blast flattened 80 million trees across 800 square miles. Every plant, every animal, every insect in the blast radius was vaporized. The shockwave was felt as far away as England. It looked like a comet impact, yet no crater was found and no debris was discovered. Scientists still can't explain what happened. But at that exact moment on the other side of the world, Nikola Tesla was conducting his latest experiment, transmitting massive amounts of electricity through the atmosphere. Tesla activated the generators in his lab and fired up Wardenclyffe Tower for one final dramatic test and sent millions of volts of electricity into the sky.

After the test was complete, Tesla looked at the readings on his equipment and said, uh-oh. Inventor and visionary Nikola Tesla was known for his groundbreaking ideas that shaped the world of science and technology. However, there was one invention that remained shrouded in mystery and controversy, a weapon of unimaginable power. He called it the Tesla gun, but it became known by a more ominous name, the Tesla death ray. Tesla's fascination with electricity led him to conceive of a weapon that could destroy entire armies from a great distance. The science behind the death ray was based on Tesla's experiments with high frequency electricity. Tesla believed that energy could be transmitted wirelessly over great distances. The weapon was designed as a large Tesla coil, which consisted of a series of capacitors that could store vast amounts of electrical energy. The energy was then released in a concentrated beam, which could be directed toward a target.

Ooh, it sounds a lot like the Death Star. It does, but I don't think that's... Don't be so proud of this technological terror you've constructed. The ability to destroy a planet is insignificant when it comes to the power of the Force. Don't try to frighten us with your sorcerer's ways, Lord Hecklefish. Your sad devotion to that ancient religion has not helped you convince more people to join Patreon. Or given you clairvoyance enough to see what videos the YouTube algorithm will f-

I find your lack of faith disturbing, human. Enough of this. Lord Hecklefish, release him. Yes, you wish. Tesla wanted to create a weapon that could be powered by a small portable generator with enough power to destroy anything in its path. Fleets of planes, fields of tanks, and even entire cities. He described the potential of the death ray as a device that would harness unlimited free energy from the space all around us.

I have harnessed the cosmic rays and caused them to operate a motor device. This new power for driving of the world's machinery will be derived from the energy which operates the universe, the cosmic energy, which whole central source for the Earth is the sun and which is everywhere present in unlimited quantities. Tesla's reasons for inventing the death ray were rooted in his strong belief in world peace.

He hoped that the weapon would act as a deterrent to war, that if every nation possessed the ability to destroy each other, there'd be no point in waging war at all, and this ultimate weapon would usher in a new age of peace. Oh, right, like how there's been world peace ever since the nuclear bomb was invented? Sarcasm. Sharp as a bowling ball, this human, eh? Obviously, political and military leaders were worried about Tesla's invention. Wherever they could, they tried to interfere. They prevented him from getting patents. They made

it difficult for him to receive funding. It became a priority to do anything and everything possible to prevent Tesla from creating this weapon. But it didn't matter what they did. Tesla already built it. In 1908, just months before the Tunguska event, renowned explorer Admiral Robert Peary set out on an expedition to the North Pole, a feat that had never before been accomplished. Well, except for Santa and his wife, and a tiny reindeer, and Rudolph, and a whole buttload of elves. Thanks for that helpful clarification.

Hey, that's why I'm here. Despite the numerous challenges, Admiral Peary was determined to reach the North Pole and make history. The journey would not be easy. The harsh Arctic environment made the expedition incredibly difficult and dangerous. The team faced extreme cold, blizzards, and unpredictable terrain. Despite these risks, Peary was determined to succeed, but he would need a new technology to help him navigate the desolate region. This is where Nikola Tesla came in.

In 1904, Tesla developed a new type of radio receiver that could detect signals from the death ray. And this receiver was used by Admiral Peary during his North Pole expedition, and it was claimed that it helped him navigate through the hazardous Arctic terrain. But that was 1904. By 1906, Tesla's chief financial backer, J.P. Morgan, was growing impatient with Tesla and the lack of financial return. If J.P. Morgan withdrew funding, Tesla's plans would be ruined. As the relationship between Morgan and Tesla began to sour, Nikola Tesla knew he needed to do something dramatic to secure his funding and secure his future.

Tesla knew the world was watching Admiral Peary's expedition to the North Pole and thought this was the perfect opportunity to demonstrate the awesome power of his invention. He would fire a bolt of energy toward Ellesmere and light up the skies, creating the greatest light show the world had ever seen. Just two months before Tunguska, Tesla wrote this. This is not a dream. Even now, wireless power plants could be constructed by which any region of the globe might be rendered uninhabitable without subjecting the population of other parts to serious danger or inconvenience. At the time of the Tunguska blast

in 1908, Peary was camped out at Ellesmere Island preparing for a final push to the pole. Tesla sent Peary a cryptic message saying the extreme cold and isolation make the Arctic the perfect location for this type of experiment. Tesla told Peary to watch the skies above the tundra for a signal. Peary asked Tesla what kind of signal he should be looking for. Tesla told him that he'll know it when he sees it. Uh-oh. Back at Wardenclyffe Tower on the north shore of Long Island, New York, the moment of truth had arrived.

Tesla took a deep breath and activated the machine that would send the charged particles coursing through an intricate network of wires and coils. At first, the tower generated a low hum, but the sound grew louder and louder until it was a deafening roar. Once the machine was fully charged, a beam of light brighter than the sun shot out of Wardenclyffe Tower and sliced through the air. For 10 or 15 seconds, vast amounts of energy poured into the atmosphere. Then it suddenly stopped. Darkness followed, and the only sound was a

crackling of static from the residual electricity created by the machine. Tesla felt an intense rush of exhilaration. The machine worked. He knew his funding would be secure and he could continue his work. But Tesla's excitement would last only a few moments. He looked at the readings on his death ray machine. It worked, but it worked too well. Rather than a dazzling light show, Tesla had created a massive wave of energy, a thousand times more powerful than an atomic bomb. This immense power caused the energy beam to overshoot its target. It didn't light up the sky above Ellesmere. It made landfall somewhere in Russia. But even Tesla didn't know how destructive his weapon really was. Your spade struck the lid of a long-lost treasure chest.

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in finance, check out cbvinstitute.com slash becomeacbv. Your future self will thank you for it. You sailed beyond the horizon in search of an island scrubbed from every map. You battled krakens and navigated through storms. Your spade struck the lid of a long-lost treasure chest. While you cooked a lasagna. There's more to imagine when you listen. Discover best-selling adventure stories on Audible.

You searched for your informant, who disappeared without a trace. You knew there were witnesses, but lips were sealed. You swept the city, driving closer to the truth. While curled up on the couch with your cat. There's more to imagine when you listen. Discover heart-pounding thrillers on Audible. I woke up to the sound of the earth quumbling beneath my feet. I could hear the trees outside my cabin being ripped from the ground and crashing down all around me.

At first, I thought it was an earthquake, but the air was filled with the sound of explosions and gunfire. Something dark and terrible was happening outside. As I stumbled out of my cabin and into the forest, I could see the sky lighting up with a fiery orange glow. It was like the sun had risen in the middle of the night and the air was thick with the smell of smoke and burning wood. Suddenly, there was a blinding flash that illuminated the entire forest and the sound of a deafening boom that shook me to my core. I fell to the ground, my ears ringing with the force of the explosion, and I struggled to regain my bearings. The trees around me were torn from the ground and I could hear the sound of splintering

wood and snapping branches. The ground shook so violently that I thought it might open up and swallow me whole. I could feel the shockwave from the blast tearing through the forest. I saw trees being flattened in all directions, and I was pelted with debris from the explosion. The air was thick with dust and ash, and it was getting harder and harder to breathe. When the dust finally cleared, the forest was a charred wasteland. The trees had been ripped from the ground, and there was nothing left but stumps and ash. The air was thick with the smell of burning wood. There were no sounds of birds or insects or animals.

Just eerie silence. I had never felt so alone in my entire life. On June 30, 1908, a massive explosion occurred in the remote Tunguska region of Siberia, releasing an estimated 15 megatons of energy. The explosion flattened an area of over 800 square miles. No animal or plant in the blast radius survived. 80 million trees were reduced to cinders. No birds or insects had time to escape. Thousands of animals on the ground were vaporized. The scientific community still debates the cause of the Tunguska event. Some theories suggest that it was caused by a natural gas explosion or a nuclear detonation

caused by extraterrestrial spacecraft. But many people believe it was a Nikola Tesla experiment that got out of control. The prevailing theory is that the explosion was caused by an airburst, a large comet that exploded in the Earth's atmosphere. But there are some problems with this theory. Eyewitnesses have reported seeing lights in the sky both before and for days after the event. Meteors don't do this. Even as far away as England, the sky was lit up. Newspapers were flooded with reports of night turning into day.

One reporter said he was able to read a book in the middle of the night using nothing but the strange light in the sky. Eyewitnesses also report the ground shaking like an earthquake for a long time before the impact. One witness said it was powerful enough to reduce a skyscraper to rubble. The seismic activity was enough to knock people off their feet, and the effects were felt all over Europe as far away as the UK. A meteor airburst would look like a streak of light or fire and then an explosion. This would last only a few seconds. But reports say a wide beam of light was in the sky for much longer than that. Locals said the air got very cold at first,

then the sky lit up brighter than the sun, and suddenly the air was very, very hot. Also, there's no meteor crater or traces of meteorite in the area. And if you draw a line from Tesla's lab in New York to Ellesmere Island and continue that line, you end up in Siberia, very close to, if not the exact point of impact. The explosion happened at an altitude of four or five miles. This is much higher than most meteor airbursts. Luckily, the impact zone happened in Siberia, one of the most remote places on Earth.

Yeah, but what if this happened to a city? Well, if the Tunguska event were to occur over a major city, it would be bad. How bad? Oh no, here comes the scary music. The sudden explosion would generate a massive shockwave that would rip through the city like a tornado, demolishing buildings and all infrastructure in its path. The shockwave would be followed by a searing fireball that would incinerate everything, leaving behind nothing but smoldering ash.

The sheer force of the explosion would create a hurricane of debris and shrapnel. Anything not firmly attached to the ground would be thrown into the air. Cars, trucks, boats, planes, people. The resulting firestorm would continue to spread, fueled by the intense heat and winds generated by the blast. Streets and buildings would be consumed by a raging inferno, trapping anyone who had survived the initial blast in an

ocean of flames and smoke. In the aftermath of such an event, the death toll would be staggering in the millions. The city and surrounding landscape would be unrecognizable. As frightening as it is that one man could create a device that could wreak this kind of devastation, it's even more frightening that another Tunguska event could happen anywhere at any time without warning. And if it does, there's nothing we could do to stop it. The Death Ray, also known as the Tesla gun, was a weapon that was said to be capable of destroying entire armies with a single shot. While Tesla's weapon is still shrouded in mystery and controversy,

the idea of a directed energy weapon is based on sound scientific principles. So, of course, modern militaries are developing them. Same old story. Create technology that kills as many people as possible, then profit from it. Maybe these weapons are used to protect our freedom. Drink some more Kool-Aid, sheep. The basic principle of directed energy weapons, or DEWs, is the conversion of electrical energy into an electromagnetic or particle beam,

which is then directed toward the target. The type of energy used and the method of delivery vary depending on the weapon. Some DEWs use lasers, some use microwaves, and others use particle beams. For example, lasers work by emitting a concentrated beam of light that can burn, blind, or disable a target. Microwave weapons use high-frequency electromagnetic radiation to heat up or damage the target. Particle beam weapons use accelerated charged particles, such as electrons or protons, to cause damage.

The effectiveness of a directed energy weapon depends on several factors. The power of the energy beam, the duration of the beam, and the distance between the weapon and the target. Range is critical, especially if the target is moving, because the weapon has to be able to track and maintain a lock. Directed energy weapons are being deployed right now. They've been used to disable missiles, drones, and other airborne threats, as well as provide non-lethal crowd control measures.

Nikola Tesla had a deep understanding of particle physics and electromagnetic theory. His energy weapon used particles. The particles, which could be electrons, protons, or ions, would be accelerated to high speeds and focused in a beam using powerful magnetic fields. The beam would then be directed at the target, where it would cause massive damage. But the idea of a directed energy weapon was around before Nikola Tesla. But if anyone could create it, it was him. Though no one officially saw it in use, Tesla claimed his prototype worked. Tesla himself fueled the speculation.

He wrote several letters to the New York Times explaining the potential of his invention. As to projecting wave energy to any particular region of the globe, this can be done by my devices. The spot at which the desired effect is to be produced can be calculated very closely, assuming the accepted terrestrial measurements to be correct. But is this what really happened at Tunguska? Was the explosion the result of a Tesla experiment gone awry, like many people believe? Or was it the result of a meteor airburst? What would be helpful is if we had modern evidence of a large meteor airburst to help us better understand Tunguska.

We have it. We do. Do. It happened in 2013. Do. And this time. We have it. We do. Do. It happened in 2013. Do. And this time, we have video. And it's terrifying. You sailed beyond the horizon

in search of an island scrubbed from every map. You battled krakens and navigated through storms. Your spade struck the lid of a long-lost treasure chest. While you cooked a lasagna. There's more to imagine when you listen. Discover best-selling adventure stories on Audible. потому уже же падал, а не спал А, блядь! On February 15, 2013, a blinding flash of light tore through the sky over the Russian city of Chelyabinsk, followed by a deafening explosion that shook the earth.

Local residents were stunned, terrified, and confused. The event, which has since become known as the Chelyabinsk Meteor, was one of the most dramatic and mysterious events in recent history and remains a testament to the scary power of the universe. The meteor that caused the Chelyabinsk event was estimated to be around 60 feet in diameter and weighed over 10,000 tons. It entered the Earth's atmosphere at a speed of approximately 19 kilometers per second. How fast is that in a number we can actually understand? 12 miles per second, or 43,000 miles per hour, almost 60 times the speed of sound. Yeah, I understand that. And now I'm terrified. The fireball glowed 30 times brighter than the sun, so bright and so hot that people suffered burns on their skin and damage to their eyes. The resulting explosion was estimated

to be equivalent to 500 kilotons of TNT, making it one of the most powerful non-nuclear explosions ever recorded. The shockwave shattered windows, damaged over 1,000 buildings, and injured 1,500 people. Unlike Tunguska, scientists were able to study the Chelyabinsk meteor in detail. They found that the meteor was likely a remnant of the early solar system and had been traveling through space for about 4.5 billion years before colliding with Earth. The Chelyabinsk event also served as a wake-up call for the scientific community because nobody saw it coming. There was zero warning.

And these types of meteor airbursts and impacts happen every day. Whenever you see a shooting star, that's a small meteor burning up in the atmosphere. But larger impacts happen pretty often too. Every 10 or 15 years, but they usually happen over the ocean so we don't notice. But that's just dumb luck. The Tunguska event was 10,000 times more powerful than the one at Chelyabinsk.

Enough to easily wipe out a large city. But the Chikshulub impact that happened 66 million years ago? That wiped out about 75% of all species on Earth. Including all the dinosaurs. And that wasn't even the biggest asteroid to hit the Earth. Not even close.

So it's not a matter of if it'll happen again, it's just a matter of when. Fortunately, scientists are taking this threat seriously. NASA's Double Asteroid Redirection Test, or DART mission, conducted a successful test on September 26, 2022. It intentionally slammed into the asteroid called Dimorphos and altered its orbit by 33 minutes. Now, that's not very much, but when considering the vast distances of space,

a 33-minute change could be the difference between an asteroid passing by harmlessly or wiping out all life on Earth. There are over 1 million asteroids in our solar system, and NASA is currently tracking over 30,000 near- 1 million asteroids in our solar system, and NASA is currently tracking over 30,000 near-Earth asteroids, or NEAs, that are potential threats. Still, that's only 90% of the dangerous objects zipping around the solar system. Because look, the dinosaurs didn't have a space program. Well...

What? Lizard people have a space program. Everybody knows that. Oh, are lizard people going to protect us from asteroids? No way. Lizard people want an asteroid. It'll save them a lot of work when most humans are wiped out. Then they can enslave the rest of us. Well, that's reassuring. Oh, don't worry. Lizard people are known to be strict but fair overlords. The universe is full of wonders, but also full of dangers.

We have to do everything we can and deploy every possible resource to ensure that we don't experience another Chelyabinsk, or another Tunguska, or another Chikshulub. Our fate is up to us. And up to the lizard people. Please don't step on my lines when I'm trying to be dramatic and hopeful. Oh, excuse me. You have to acknowledge the lizard people. Oh, come on. No one believes in lizard people.

And even if they did, they should be more worried about asteroids. You sailed beyond the horizon in search of an island scrubbed from every map. You battled krakens and navigated through storms. Your spade struck the lid of a long-lost treasure chest while you cooked a lasagna. There's more to imagine when you listen. Discover best-selling adventure stories on Audible. The story of the Tunguska event,

the Tesla death ray, and the potential connection between the two is an example of the power of human imagination and the endless possibilities of science and technology. While the theory that the death ray caused the explosion remains unproven, the story serves as a reminder of the potential that scientific discovery and technological innovation have to change the world. The legacy of Nikola Tesla is not just in his inventions, but also in his vision for the future. Tesla was a forward thinker who believed that science and technology held the key to a brighter and a better world. He once said, we crave for new sensations, but soon become indifferent to them. The wonders of yesterday are today common occurrences. Now that's certainly true. Look at smartphones. These devices are marvels

of engineering, packed with advanced sensors, processors, and software that allow us to communicate, learn, and entertain ourselves in ways that were unimaginable just a few decades ago. Yet despite their incredible capabilities, we treat them as if they were as mundane as a toaster or a vacuum cleaner. The same can be said for many other innovations, from self-driving cars and drones to virtual reality and artificial intelligence. We've become so accustomed to the incredible power and potential of these technologies that we sometimes forget how amazing they truly are. But when Tesla said the wonders of yesterday are today common occurrences, he wasn't scolding us. That was a dream that he had. That technology, specifically his technology, would be available to everyone, everywhere in the world. Tesla's vision for the

future was that science and technology would improve the human condition. He saw a world where energy was abundant and cheap, where people could communicate instantly across vast distances, and where machines could do the work that humans once had to do by hand. He believed that these advancements could lead to a better and more prosperous world for all. And he was right. 70% of all products we touch can be traced back to Tesla, including 100% of products that use electricity. His ideas continue to inspire.

Electric cars, solar power, and wireless communication owe a debt to Tesla. In the end, the story of the Tunguska event and Tesla's death ray is not just about the potential for destruction and chaos, but also about the incredible power of human ingenuity and the limitless potential of science and technology. Tesla said, the present is theirs. The future, for which I really work, is mine. But because of him, the future now belongs to all of us.

I just hope we use it wisely. You sailed beyond the horizon in search of an island scrubbed from every map. You battled krakens and navigated through storms. Your spade struck the lid of a long-lost treasure chest. While you cooked a lasagna. There's more to imagine when you listen. Discover best-selling adventure stories on Audible. and like, subscribe, share, comment. That stuff really helps the channel. Like most topics we cover here, today's was recommended by you.

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