SALEKHARD, Russia, July 29 (UPI) -- Just two weeks after footage of a mysterious crater in Russia's northern Yamal peninsula went viral, two more massive holes have been discovered in Siberia.
One of the two new holes, this one some 50 feet wide, was found a couple hundred miles away from the initial crater, also on the Yamal peninsula. Like the first, the hole is encircled by a pile of dirt and debris, suggesting an outward explosion or extraction -- as opposed to an impact of sorts.
The second of the two new holes was found by reindeer herders in the Taymyr peninsula to the east of Yamal. The crater, which is a snowy region, measures more than 300 feet deep, but just 12 feet wide.
Mikhail Lapsui, a deputy of the regional parliament, told the Siberian Times that he recently traveled with scientists to investigate the first of the two new holes, which is located near the the Bovanenkovo gas field.
"According to local residents, the hole formed on 27 September 2013," Lapsui told the Times. "Observers give several versions. According to the first, initially at the place was smoking, and then there was a bright flash. In the second version, a celestial body fell there."
Though the leading explanation for these massive craters is an explosive mixture of methane and shale gas released by melting permafrost, there are a number of competing theories. And scientists are reluctant to offer a conclusive cause-and-effect until further research is done.