3 - Reaching the Inaccessible Terrain

Summary

This chapter picks up in the 1920s where it follows the campaign of scientist Leonid Kulik to reach the site of the blast. After gathering various pieces of information about the 1908 event, Kulik set off to find the location of Tunguska. This endeavor proved more difficult than expected as the desolate taiga of Siberia remained inaccessible on his first several tries. Yet Kulik’s doggedness was well-suited for the remoteness and severity of the Tunguska environment. Aided by Evenki guides and the work of a handful of other researchers, Kulik finally made it to the epicenter in 1927. His team undertook another, more extensive, expedition the following year. Despite this success, the Tunguska taiga and the cosmos continued to exert a major influence on the research of field scientists, while public attention helped turn Tunguska into a mystery.