On the Mangyshlak peninsula, 50 kilometers from the city of Aktau, the Karagiye depression stretches, which means "black mouth" in Turkic. This is one of the deepest depressions in the land, it is 133 meters below sea level. The events taking place in these places defy explanation
The record holder for the depth is considered the Ghor depression, which captures pieces of the territory of Israel. Jordan and Syria. Its depth is 395 meters below sea level. In second place is the Turfan Basin (154 m. China), in third place is Afar (153 m. Republic of Djibouti), then Qattara (133 m. Egypt). Karagiye, located on the territory of Western Kazakhstan, ranks fifth.
Karagiye is a giant bowl with asymmetrical slopes. Its length is 40. and its width is 10 kilometers.
Researchers of paranormal phenomena know that the Karagiye Depression is one of the most famous anomalous zones in Central Asia. It is here that from time to time the appearance of unidentified flying objects is noted. Why Karagiye is of interest to UFOs. so far no one knows, but the testimonies of numerous eyewitnesses confirm that mysterious red balls with surprising constancy ply the sky above the depression.
One of the first reports of a UFO sighting over Karagiye appeared in the spring of 1979. Then the engineer Rozhkovsky, who was not far from those places, noticed a red ball. flying at low altitude, but with great speed. When the ball disappeared behind the hill, the engineer decided that an explosion should be heard now, because the impression was created that the object would inevitably crash into the ground. However, he did not wait for the explosion, only the darkness seemed to thicken even more …
Story of St. Petersburg students
If it is rather difficult to explain what attracts unidentified flying objects to Karagiye, then it is quite possible to understand the interest of anomalous people in this place. During one of my trips to Kazakhstan, I met a group of St. Petersburg students who had just visited Black Maw and were full of impressions. Here's what I learned from their stories.
Not a single person who had to visit the Mangyshlak Peninsula will refuse to visit Karagiye. Even if the paranormal phenomena leave you indifferent, the nature of this amazing place is sure to arouse admiration. Here you can see a rocky desert, and dwarf shrubs, and thickets of Kazakh lilacs, and moving sands.
Numerous monitor lizards and turtles have chosen the depression as their habitat. Birds of prey soar in the sky, looking out for partridges, foxes. hares. The local lynx, caracal, and manul, a wild cat, are found in Karagiye. Perhaps tourists will not be pleased with the locusts, scorpions and snakes, which abound in the sands, but all this evil simply will not pay attention to you if you yourself do not disturb its peace.
The Lady of the Clouds
How did the Black Mouth appear in the eastern part of the Mangyshlak plateau? It is believed that it was formed with the leaching of saline rocks, as well as subsidence and karst processes characteristic of the coast of the Caspian Sea. In local limestones, dolomites and gypsum, there are many cracks, to which groundwater seeped, dissolving rocks, eroding cracks, gradually creating deep chasms.
Caves appeared in the walls of the abyss, the ceilings of which from time to time collapsed due to the weight of the overlying layers. This process was directed into the depths of the earth, where new calcareous and salt-bearing rocks lay. As a result, craters, niches, grottoes, passages, cavities, natural wells appeared. Groundwater continues to erode the rock of the depression today. This is evidenced by the numerous precipices, ravines and gullies. There are places in Karagiye where it is better not to go if you do not want to fall through and be buried under the soil. They say that thousands of years ago there was a lake on the site of Karagiye.
The climate of Mangyshlak is very dry, with no more than 200 millimeters of precipitation per year. However, scientists have established that these almost dry places are a natural generator of rain clouds. In summer, ascending air currents rise from the depression, which form huge clouds. This process was recorded by the equipment installed on board artificial satellites.
Stop! Think!
To Karagiye you need to drive along a flat plain, where strong winds usually blow. Guides are usually advised to stop before descending into the depression. However, even without this advice, tourists and researchers of anomalous zones prefer to make a short break before continuing their journey.
They seem to feel an inner impulse commanding them to linger on the edge of a giant natural bowl. Petersburg students said that about a kilometer before the Black Maw, they suddenly felt extraordinary inspiration: they began to sing, tell jokes, and laugh. They say that people in different ways feel the influence of this amazing place: someone has an irresistible desire to quickly start the descent, someone suddenly begins to yearn and persuade others to return.
Once upon a time the Great Silk Road ran here, along which there are more than 600 ancient necropolises.
Scientists of Kazakhstan are constantly conducting their research in the depression. However, neither them. nor is the Black Maw in a hurry to reveal its secrets to researchers from other countries.
A test for the strong in spirit
Students from St. Petersburg spent several days in Karagiye. At first, they wanted to pitch their tents near a drying lake in the southwestern part of the depression. However, experts in those places warned that it is better not to approach him - you can sink into the ground. Therefore, they set up their camp near a small pool with running water and the Prokhladny spring, which formed on the site of a once drilled well. The spring water tastes salty, but you can drink it. A stream flows out of Prokhladnoye, rushes south and soon gets lost somewhere in the sands.
At night, the guys left a duty officer at the tents, who watched the dark sky in the hope of seeing red balls. But. despite the assurances of old-timers that. that unidentified objects appear here quite often, it was not possible to see them.
Some of the students suggested that the UFO interest in those places was caused by the fast neutron nuclear reactor, which is located in Aktau. This reactor not only burns nuclear fuel, but also produces it. But Karagiye is, as already mentioned, 40 kilometers from the city. In addition, the launch of the reactor was carried out in 1973, and the first fireball over the Black Maw was noticed in April 1979.
Perhaps, if the students stayed in Black Maw longer, they could be convinced. that the sighting of UFOs in these places is not idle fiction, but soon some of them began to complain of weakness and headaches. Those who often visit Karagiye. they claim that at first the same thing happened to them, and then it passed. It's just that the Black Maw tests people for strength and allows only the most resilient and enthusiastic to remain. However, the guys chose not to take risks and, perhaps, were right in this.