The Siberian Scientists who Drilled into Hell-Fiction!
Summary of eRumor:
Russian scientists conducting deep hole drilling experiments in Siberia break through the earth’s crust at more than 14 kilometers. They find it unusually hot at that depth (2,000 degrees F). As a part of trying to listen to movement in the earth’s crust, they drop a microphone into the drilled hole and are horrified when they realize they are hearing the voices of millions of people crying out in torment. Terrified, they decide to abandon the project, but not before a bat-like apparition arises from the hole and gives them a message.
The Truth:
This is the combination of an urban legend and a hoax. The original story of the deep hole drilling in Siberia made the rounds of tabloid newspapers in the early 1990’s. Some researchers have theorized that the story somehow got started from an authentic deep hole drilling project, but that has never been proven. That original story included the account of breaking through the crust, hearing the voices from the hole, and shutting down the drilling operation. The plot thickened when a Norwegian school teacher named Age Rendalen decided to embellish the story with the description of the bat-like creature coming out of the hole. He did it purposely to see whether a religious television program would accept the story at face value without checking it out, and they did. TruthOrFiction.com has first-hand information from Mr. Rendalen.
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