The tent found by searchers on February 26, 1959. The tent was cut open from the inside and most of the skiers escaped the camp barefoot or wearing only socks. (Public Domain)
The famous “Dyatlov Pass Incident” – on January 23, 1959, ten young men went to the Ural Mountains in Russia Except for one person who felt discomfort in his joints and withdrew, the other nine continued their journey to the mountains.
On February 1, they pitched their tents on the eastern slope of the mountain range, Kholat Syakhl (which means “mountain of death” in the native Mansi language). All nine people died that night.
When search and rescue teams finally arrived on the scene a few weeks later, it was discovered that most of the expedition’s tent was buried in snow, with only a small portion exposed. The tent appeared to have been damaged by someone cutting it open from the inside. The next day, searchers found the first body next to a cedar tree, and over the next few months, as the snow melted, they found the bodies of all the victims in various parts of the slope. They were scattered all over the place, some naked, some with skulls and chests smashed by unknown objects, some with missing eyeballs, and one even without a tongue.
The cause of death did not appear to be the same for everyone, and investigators were unable to close the case for years, claiming that “unknown natural factors” had caused their deaths. Some suspected secret Soviet military experiments, others speculated that they were attacked by aliens, and some guessed that they had encountered an avalanche.
In those circumstances, an avalanche was the most likely explanation, but investigators were unable to explain several important points. For example.
Why did the avalanche leave no trace when it is a large catastrophic event?
The gentle slope of the hill on which their tent was built made it unlikely that an avalanche would have occurred.
the meteorological records showed that there was no snow in the area that night, so there was no reason for the weight of the snow to increase and cause an avalanche.
avalanche victims usually die of asphyxiation, and the traumatic injuries sustained by those killed are not typical of avalanche victims
If it was an avalanche, it most likely occurred while they were pitching their tents and stirring up the snow, but according to forensic analysis, there was a nine-hour gap between their deaths and the Time they pitched their tents.
The study, published Jan. 28 this year in the journal Communications Earth & Environment, uses contemporary computer simulation systems to propose a new set of explanations. The researchers believe that the interval between the point in time when the tent was pitched and the time of death is the key to solving the mystery of the disaster.
Deceptive terrain
The undulating terrain of the “Mountain of Death” appears to be gently sloping under the snow cover, but the slope is actually close to 30 degrees – the lower limit of the slope needed for an avalanche to occur. As seen in previous investigation reports, the snow at the base below this slope is not strong, loose and slippery, causing the upper layers to easily collapse.
Alexander Puzrin, a geotechnical engineer at the ETH Zürich, one of the researchers, said, “The local topography is confusing.”
Where did the extra snow come from?
For an avalanche to occur, there would have to be more snow on the hillside near the tent to cause it. Since there was no snow that night, where did more snow come from?
The researchers noted that the diary of the victims mentioned that they encountered strong winds that night. The study speculated that it would have been a descending wind (also called a downslope wind), a localized wind that forms in the valley. This wind likely blew snow from higher ground down the slope around their camp, causing the snow on the camp slope to finally collapse. This would explain why the disaster occurred nine hours after the camp was set up.
Their model shows that the snow that caused the avalanche to overwhelm the camp did not need to be much, probably only 16 feet long – a piece of snow the size of an SUV would have been enough to cause the disaster.
Such a small avalanche site, the study says, was quickly filled with subsequent snow cover and could explain why no other avalanche traces were left at the site.
Borrowing from the “Frozen” special effects simulation
One of the previously mentioned doubts is that such a small avalanche could have caused those different physical trauma to the victims? Researchers traveled to Hollywood to visit the special effects staff of disney‘s animated film Frozen. The movie’s animated scenes of snow and ice were very realistic, thanks in large part to the use of a highly simulated computer system that simulated a variety of beautiful snow and ice effects with real-world parameters.
However, the researchers borrowed this system to engage in a more brutal work – simulation of snow and ice on the human body caused by the impact and possible injuries.
Researchers noted a detail, because these climbers can not sleep directly on top of the snow, so they use skis as a bed and insulation, so that when sleeping body heat will not melt the snow.
However, when SUV-sized snow blocks hit their tents, it means their bodies will suffer the impact of hard objects. When they entered these parameters into the system, the system showed that a 16-foot-long block of snow was enough to break their ribs and fracture their skulls.
Still, Puzlin said, such injuries are not fatal, at least not on the spot.
“Paradoxical undressing” phenomenon
The researchers went on to speculate about what happened afterward, when the camp collapsed and the climbers cut open their tents to get out, such as to the nearest row of red pine trees for temporary shelter.
Three of them were most seriously injured, but all the bodies were found outside the tent. That means the other teammates dragged them all out of the tent to try to rescue them. “It’s a story of courage and friendship.” Puzlin said.
Except for a few who may have died of their wounds, most died of hypothermia, which means most of them froze to death. Yet this does not explain the fact that there were some people wearing very little clothing or even naked.
Researchers say this may be a “paradoxical undressing” phenomenon that occurs when the body is hypothermic. Some studies have found that people are about to freeze to death in the moment before, will appear to take off clothes such an abnormal, puzzling behavior. A few such cases have been reported, but this is not a behavior that must occur in every case of death due to hypothermia, so the research is still inconclusive.
Existing research speculates that usually when the body encounters extreme cold, the blood vessels in the limbs will first contract to ensure that blood can first supply to the heart and brain these important organs. However, with the increase in cold time, the body will eventually lose consciousness into a coma. At this point, the body to maintain the external vasoconstriction of the muscles are exhausted, blood vessels relaxed to re-expand, resulting in blood flow back to the extremities so that the body produces a hot feeling, in a vague consciousness, the body will involuntarily begin to take off their clothes, in which soon after the complete loss of temperature and death.
Researchers said that this is a bizarre tragedy, leaving the families of the victims with indelible pain. This study is still not enough to draw conclusions for this case, still need multiple coincidental factors are put together to make such a scenario happen.
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