Siberia in Retrospect

While I've theorized, researched and hypothesized Siberia inside and out, I find that it is always important to take a final look back over everything we've discovered, especially with so many questions still left unanswered, and view the season as a whole hence Siberia in Retrospect.  This post is a glance back at all the mysteries presented over the season, the finite answers that have been uncovered as well as theories and thoughts on all the rest.  Even I was surprised at how many small occurrences I had forgotten about while composing this post!  If nothing else I think this is a great way to end the Siberia season and get ready for a plethora of new fall shows, mainly starting this week, as well as provide a great reminder if or when a second season begins.  Without further ado let's take a look at Siberia in retrospect with everything we now have discovered!

I would like to begin with the smaller questions as there are many and while most have simple explanations that were uncovered during the season, there are still others with easily deduced logical theories lurking in the shadows!

The Smaller Questions: 

1. What do the cave drawings represent and why are they important?
• These represent the Evenkis' feud with the Valleymen.  While there are doubts as to their age, we know they've been around since at least 1908 as Merilik confirmed the Valleymen had been present for over one-hundred years.  I think an important aspect to take from the image is that the Valleymen appear to have entered through a second sun, represented by the spiral, or at least appeared simultaneously.  As eye-witness reports of the Tunguska Event described a "second sun", it is plausible that the cave drawings represent the Valleymen emerging during the 1908 event.
  
  
  
  
  
2. What secrets can be deduced from the mutated frog?
• This is most likely a product of the genetic testing at the Russian science center.
3. Who is Sabina and does she have the gun?
• We now know that she was an Israeli soldier who used her skills to pillage the producers' camp and hide her stolen supplies in a cave in order to gain an advantage in the competition (surviving the winter).  It is also possible that she has some connection to Siberia through her lineage.
• Although she wasn't in possession of the gun as early as I first thought, ultimately she was the only one to ever have the gun as it remained hidden until she finally uncovered it in the episode "One by One".
  
  
  
  
  
4. What is the importance of Victoria's vision and the mushrooms?
• The fungi was revealed as a spiritual tool used by the Evenki shamans to see the future.  While some of Victoria's prophecy proved to be true, such as the "fire in the sky", it is yet to be known whether her claim that the contestants will all die will also come to fruition or if it is possible for the group to overcome this troubling omen.
5. What is Carolina hiding?
• We learned fairly early on that Carolina is actually Joyce, an actress planted by the producers to drive the storyline, create conflict and pursue love interests.  This fact provides backing for my theory that, while the show was a ruse for ulterior motives, the majority of the people involved believed that it was an actual television production that would at sometime air thus they hired an actress from maximum entertainment value.
6. What is the significance of the symbol that appears in credits?
• Near the end of the season we learned that it marks the Valleymen's territory and is a symbolic representation of them. 
• It may also represent a compass as it led Miljan to his discovery of Kulik's journal. 
• Another interesting fact is that it matches the Mesopotamian symbol Anu for "God" which provides some traction for my theory that the Valleymen are actually the origin of the Evenkis' belief in Ogdy.  It also connects Valleymen to the cauldrons with cuneiform wedge marks.
  
  
  
  
  
7. What happened to the producers?
• I believe they were attacked by the Valleymen after the "fire in the sky" incited the beasts to take vengeance on those camped in or near their territory.
8. Who are the children in the woods?
• The child Sabina saw was later identified as Sasha, an English speaking blonde girl being cared for by the Evenkis.  However, there still lies a mystery as to who her American scientist father is as well as her mother. 
• In addition, multiple contestants experienced children laughing in the woods and, as there didn't seem to be other children Sasha's age at the Evenki camp, I'm still not sure who or what the contestants heard.
9. What happened to Natalie?
• While whether or not she actually decided to leave and return to her likely abusive boyfriend is still a mystery, I believe she was ultimately killed by the Valleymen.  She had similar wounds as the tiger and also was returned to the area around the settlement as the animal was which I took to be a warning from the Valleymen to not enter their territory.  However, her frostbitten hands suggest she was alive after the first show implying that she may have been captured and held hostage before she was killed.
10. What's with Sabina's necklace?
• We learned Sabina's locket was of great importance to her as it contained a picture of the most important person in the world to her, her son.  We also found out that due to rough circumstances her son was taken from her custody which was the reason she joined the show and needed the money.  What was not clear was why the possessed Miljan took a sudden interest in it after finding Kulik's journal.  My best guess is that it somehow connects her to Siberia possibly through relatives as well as its presence on the skeleton she later finds.
  
  
  
  
  
11.  What made the trap and did Miljan know about it?
• I believe the trap was made by the Evenki tribe as a sort of security system should the Valleymen cross into Evenki territory.  It would also explain why they took in Irene and healed her as the Evenki felt responsible for her wounds.  I honestly don't think Miljan knew about it since he seemed genuinely surprised and his goal appeared to be simply to lead her away from the Ogdy statue rather than harm her.  Although it is a possibility as he later attempted to kill her himself and I don't believe his plan when taking her into the woods was to aid her, but rather to hand her over to the Valleymen however the Evenkis arrived first.
  
  
  
  
  
12. Who fired the gunshots Sabina heard in the woods?
• I feel like this question is unclear as there were no real clues that can lead us to an answer.  We saw the Evenkis carried guns so they might've been hunting or it could have been the military-like presence executing the scientists.
13. What's going on with Miljan and what is the importance of his journal?
• Although this was a bigger question in the show as the mystery spanned over the majority of the episodes, I think that we gained enough clues to have a pretty good understanding of his situation.  Something that was very telling to me was the fact that when Miljan found the Ogdy statue he intuitively knew its name.  As we now know he is connected to the Valleymen as the symbol he was moved into carving on his arm is theirs, it strengthens my Alien Vs. Predator theory regarding the Valleymen being the basis of the Evenki belief in Ogdy.  Once the "fire in the sky" began Miljan watched in amazement like a child experiencing fireworks for the first time as his entire demeanor changed, he made a beeline back to Ogdy and then disappeared from the camera.  Thus as far, as his possession is concerned, I think that the Valleymen are the origin of the Evenkis' belief in Ogdy and their belief that the shamans and Ogdy are good friends, remember Miljan called the totem pole his old friend, as well as that a previous shaman's spirit that lives in the lower world with Ogdy (see Siberia: Facts Edition) can inhabit a descendant comes from their alien technology or abilities which is what has happened to Miljan.  On the subject of the journal, I think his possession allows him to understand it without reading Russian, but what I find most interesting is that it's not a previous settler's writings rather Kulik's, a famous studier of the Tunguska Event and the same man who's expedition is being studied at the Russian Science Center.  What's also intriguing is that Kulik faced many of the same predicaments as the contestants such as uncovering the lore of the Valleymen and a large snow forcing him to turn back and postpone his expedition.  While we know what's going on with Miljan, the importance or relevance of Kulik and his journal as well as the specifics of Miljan's possession are still a mystery.
14. Are the contestants wrapped up in this by accident or is there a reason for their presence?
• I personally feel that there is a large motif of fate or purpose to the story relating to the contestants on the show.  Sabina and Sam both have cultural ties to Russia, Miljan's possession that is said to only pass to descendants of the Siberian locals, the mystery of Sasha's lineage and the enormous amount of what seems to be luck along with a perfect skill-set allowing them to overcome the massive number of predicaments they've faced all is too much to blame on coincidence.  One thing that sealed it for me was the imaginary footprints Joyce hallucinated in the episode "A Gathering Fog" just when they were hopeless and had no idea which way to go, this "vision" set them on the perfect course towards the science center.  Again, when Sam seemingly came back from the dead to save Johnny as he was the only one who had knowledge of the life-saving maneuvers needed in the moment.  How this idea would or will play out and whether it's through relation or some other divine plan is still unknown.
15. What was the large decimated area at the end of "First Snow"?
• This is the effect of the second event, likely caused by the cauldrons, during the "fire in the sky".  The area is similar in appearance to Hiroshima where the trees in the middle of the site stood upright stripped of their branches and as it spanned out, over 2,150 kilometers, the trees farther away were knocked down pointing away from the center.  The original 1908 Tunguska Event had the same outcome but over the years the foliage has regrown, so unless they traveled back in time and are witnessing the effect of the 1908 event, which I do not believe to be the case, this is most likely a part of the event they witnessed.
  
  
  
  
  
16. What did Miljan do inside the girls' cabin?
• This is purely a guess as we weren't given any clues as to what Miljan actually did, but I don't believe he raped or hurt Irene in anyway.  I think that he was likely guided by the voice in his head or his Valleyman possession to inspect Irene's wound and her condition in order to determine his next steps.  However I'm open to your ideas as well so please comment below!
17. What is the significance of the inscription inside the Revealer?
• This just solidifies the fact that the game-show was a ruse for a bigger experiment.  The fact that they located the Revealers for Test Group A and B leads me to the idea that the scientists previously attempted their experiment using behavioral modification techniques with the Revealer providing rewards for staying at the settlement and the speakers in the woods scaring the original subjects likely monkeys, from wandering away.  When this wasn't successful they decided human test subjects were needed and thus invented the show to get them there.  See bigger questions below for more on the testing.
18. What is causing the radio to be jammed?
• This was likely caused by the Tesla Tower at the Russian Science Center.  See Siberia: Facts Edition for more information on its capabilities.
  
  
  
  
  
19. Where did Miljan go and what did he do with Irene?
• We now know that he was guided by the voice in his head to take her into the woods to save her.  While it was ultimately the Evenkis who rescued her, I don't think that was the initial plan as we also discovered Miljan is connected to the Valleymen rather than the Evenkis and the fact that their presence terrified Miljan into simply leaving her out in the woods alone.  Had his plan been to give her to the Evenkis for safety I think their appearance would've felt right or comfortable to him opposed to scaring him away.  It's more plausible that he intended to hand her over to the Valleymen but the Evenkis arrived before he was able to do so.
  
  
  
  
  
20. What did Esther steal from the Revealer?
• The money!  When I first hypothesized about this before it was revealed I mentioned that it would make perfect sense for the winter to have passed and the final Revealer horn sounds presenting the prize to the remaining contestants.  Now that we know this to be true while there were ulterior motives for the show, they intended it to be real and for someone to win.  However, things went awry and the plan changed with its new goal to eliminate everyone who had uncovered the secret experiment.
21. What is the beacon?
• A radio tower for a Russian science center studying Kulik's 1927 expedition, likely to search for the cause of the Tunguska Event in order to recreate it, as well as conducting genetic experiments manipulating animals.  We also know the science center is connected to the show as two Revealers, similar to that at the settlement were found.
22. Why did it snow?
• This one is tricky.  I have a few different thoughts; as Kulik seems to be an important aspect of what's going on as the scientists were studying footage of his expedition and Miljan found his journal I find it very strange that his trip was also impeded by an unusual snowfall which makes me wonder if somehow he is tied up in the strange series of events.  Another possibility is that the scientists at the outpost used the weather manipulating ability of the tower to keep the "hikers" from continuing towards the beacon.  This also could tie into Kulik as the scientists mat have been inspired by his expedition as the snow caused him to turn back.  They may have hoped the group would return to the settlement or simply perish in the snow.  Lastly it could be simple coincidence as large shifts in weather are normal in that region, but I favor the tower theory above all.
  
  
  
  
  
23. What caused the helicopter to explode and what happened to the bodies?
• I don't think the helicopter was an elaborate stunt.  I never really took the charred clipboard of host Jonathon Buckley to mean he died or was on board.  Instead I believe that because the chopper was quite close to the decimated forest area, which was caused by the bright spotlight we saw in Johnny and Joyce's recovered footage, it's most likely that the beam set the helicopter aflame while the lights distracted the pilot thus it crashed.  As we have seen the Valleymen remove the bodies of the tiger, Natalie and probably the production camp it is plausible they did the same with the victims of the crash.
24. What happened to Annie and Esther?
• We now know that they were captured by the Evenkis who later also took the remaining contestants at the settlement.  Under the advise of the shaman who consumed the mushrooms in order to look into the future they were released and guided to the Russian Science Center to reunite with the others.
25. What is the significance of the falcon in the lab?
• I believe the falcon was there because the scientists were attempting to genetically recreate the Valleymen.  After multiple tries using reptiles, hence the mutated frog, along with other species they discovered falcon DNA was needed.  I think they kept it alive to have fresh blood samples for their experiments.
  
  
  
  
  
26. What is the significance of the jets?
• This was a strange event that didn't make much sense to me and seemed odd and out of place.  The only idea that I can think of is that the jets were taking aerial footage of the area.  This connects back to the real Tunguska Event because aerial photos were also captured of the outcome of the event but were later ordered to be burned.  This screams cover-up and perhaps the powerful people behind the experiment have been working on discovering the cause of the Tunguska Event for decades in order to recreate the weapon used as well as the beasts that appeared simultaneously in connection to the event.
27. Are the Evenkis good or bad? & What is the significance of their snow shoes?
• I believe the Evenkis are good-natured people who simply keep to themselves and practice their age-old traditions and beliefs similar to the Amish.  The only reason they got involved is because the contestants and producers violated their lengthy truce with the Valleymen putting their tribe in jeopardy.  I do question their involvement with the experiment as Sasha's, the young girl residing with them, father clearly integrated himself into the tribe teaching Merilik English and ultimately leaving his daughter with them.
  
  
  
  
  
• We learned that their beast-like snowshoes are a deterrent as they match the footprints of the Valleymen in order to trick them into not following their tracks.  This makes me question the Valleymen's intelligence as the marks made by the Evenki are clearly made by someone with a smaller gait thus an easily spotted fake.
  
  
  
  
  
28. What knocked over the beacon and why?
• I believe this could've been done by either the scientists after discovering the snow had not caused the contestants to turn back or the military group sent in to clean up the mess by murdering the scientists and destroying the beacon to ensure the contestants wouldn't be able to radio out for help.
  
  
  
  
  
29. Who killed the scientists?
• We now know from Sam's translation of their militant "rescuers" that they murdered the scientists and likely destroyed the computers with proof of the experimentation as well as destroyed the beacon.  The fact that the doors were locked after the fact provides proof that whomever they work for understands the risks of the contestants escaping with knowledge of the experiment and has ties to the science center as they provided the location as well as possessed keys to the outpost.
  
  
  
  
  
30. Why did Esther insist on returning to the settlement?
• To retrieve her money!  Understanding that they very well were about to be rescued, she had no intention of abandoning her cash prize at the settlement.
31. Who is Sasha?
• This one puzzles me.  While she is cared for by the Evenkis she explained her father was a scientist who lived with the tribe and she has no memory of her mother.  One thought is that because she only says her father is gone but not specifically dead is that he is the leader of the experimentation or at least part of it.  Sasha also informed Sabina that he was American so I don't believe we have met him yet.  The identity of her mother is a complete mystery so I hope if there is a second season this is one of the questions that we will obtain an answer for.
  
  
  
  
  
32. How did Daniel know the mine was a dud?
• Another puzzling question.  While I have received a few comments explaining that had the mine been active it would have exploded when Irene initially stepped on it as well as information about the map the contestants found at the science center had the mines plotted out, I still have doubts.  However, I'm no expert on minefields and as the internet search I did came up empty this is one of those questions I feel I would be guessing at rather than providing a concrete answer or logical theory.
  
  
  
  
  
33. Why did the Valleymen attack?
• While I predicted this would happen due to Miljan's connection with them, there is also another reasonable explanation; they simply followed the group's footprints.  Their timing is suspicious as it happened right as the armed men were about to shoot Joyce which lends credence to the idea that for some reason the Valleymen want to protect the group or select members.  Hopefully, we will be granted a second season in which who or what they are as well as their motives are uncovered, but for now it makes sense to me that the Valleymen value some of the contestants as they did not attack them as they did the producers.
34. What was the weapon the military group was searching for?
• Sam translated the Russian men's conversation and uncovered they were at the science center looking for a weapon.  If the scientists were responsible for attempting to duplicate the Tunguska Event and the tower is in fact a copy of the Wardenclyffe tower (see: Siberia: Facts Edition) it would be a powerful directed-energy weapon that could also explain some of the other mysteries in this episode.  However, if opposed to my original theory that the science center was responsible for second Tunguska blast and in fact it was the cauldrons, which very well may be the writers' explanation for the original Tunguska Event as well (see: Siberia: Facts Edition), I think that yields a plausible theory that the men were looking for the cauldrons.  While I'm not sold that these metal huts are alien weaponry left in the Siberian wilderness, it is a logical direction for the show.  I believe they are looking for what caused the "fire in the sky" as before they were researching a one hundred year old event and footage from 1927, when now they know that it is in Tunguska and was used more recently so they have set out to find it.
  
  
  
  
  
35. Why was the town evacuated?
• I think that this fits perfectly into the weapon the armed men were searching for.  Had a powerful blast like that occurred it is feasible that nearby towns would be evacuated for safety reasons, as it could have been a misfire or a test run, as well as the continuing danger that would exist had a weapon of that nature deployed aimed at the town.  However, this theory also comes with the question: Wouldn't the Russian military be searching for the cause?  I'm at a dilemma with that one because I don't believe the armed men are Russian military.  I don't think the military would have killed the scientists inside or damaged the equipment and locked the door behind themselves.  I think that the idea that this group is working with the science center is the most plausible answer, they killed the scientists and destroyed the radio tower so no one could communicate out.  They asked if this was all of them as they didn't know which contestants had made it through the harsh conditions.  If this is the case, it backs up the theory that they didn't want the group to ever leave Siberia as they were ready to execute them.  This also means that the tower didn't cause the second event as if they had deployed their own weapon, they probably wouldn't be looking for it.  What I obtain from this line of reasoning is that while they were attempting to recreate the event, they did not succeed thus the second event must have been caused by the cauldrons.
• While I do still think that time discrepancies play a part in the show, I don't think this is the case involving the second Tunguska-like event.  If they had flashed back to 1908 and were experiencing the original Tunguska Event it would mean that the entire world or at least Russia was jumping back and forth with them.  I've come to this conclusion because for the Russian government to evacuate a nearby town would mean they witnessed the effects as well miles away, so while I do think time disruptions are involved I don't think the "fire in the sky" was a trip back to 1908.
  
  
  
  
  
36. Where did Esther go? & Did she collude with others for the cash prize?
• Esther didn't seem to know about the nearby town so I'm not sure about the idea of her planning to meet up with someone there however, Esther is a pro at lying so she could have just been plying dumb.  While I think that a reasonable twist would be to have her working with the cameraman who she blackmailed or even the host to get out with the money, there aren't really any facts or clues to go by so these ideas are nothing more than a guess.  If the goal was for Esther to get out and meet with someone, I'm not sure how she could've planned to escape and trek over a hundred miles alone.  I honestly think Esther is on her own, on the run attempting to get as far away with the money as possible!  Recently in some discussion with other Siberia fans, I realized I didn't really make hich my beliefs clear in this section.  I don't think Esther stopped in the town to meet someone, I believe it's more likely she was unaware of her surroundings and driving a stolen military truck which uses a lot of gas is too conspicuous.  Being the smart, conniving girl that she is it is plausible that she stopped for supplies, most importantly a map so she can escape Siberia, and possibly steal a smaller car.  While I think/hope that in season 2 we will run into her again after being caught by the military presence or swindled by another as she will have to face the very people she abandoned.
  
  
  
  
  
  
37. What happened to Johnny & Joyce during their memory lapse?
• While there are a lot of people out there wondering if the cauldrons caused the two's confusion in the episode "Fire in the Sky", I felt like the tape gave my theory concrete proof that it was not the cauldrons but the lights in the sky.  In this episode we saw the tape of what happened to the two while alone in the woods which provided answers to at least a few of the lingering questions out there.  We witnessed that as the two argued they came across a cauldron with unusual markings, after studying it the continued forward and didn't show any sign of confusion or disorientation.  Suddenly they were attacked by the beast, our first glance at the Valleymen which was a terrifying one (see picture below), this is what caused Joyce's abrasions and Johnny's battered hand was from nothing more than punching a tree.  After the lights in the sky progressed the two suddenly didn't remember the cauldron, the Valleyman or how they became injured, so ultimately it was pretty clear to me that the event caused their confusion.
38. What was Buckley doing in the evacuated town?
• The host's arrival with the armed men combined with the look on his face and his tone of voice makes me think that he is in cahoots with the scientists.  Possibly, that he was placed there to keep an eye on the progress of the experiment.  It is possible that he is the mastermind behind the show and the testing as he looked on the contestants with disapproval.  I've put a lot of thought into this question and I don't believe that his clipboard in the helicopter means that he was aboard when it crashed.  In addition, he wasn't like the Jeff Probst of the show where he needed to be present at the producers' camp as he rarely interacted with the contestants.  He also lied to them about Tommy's "accident" which adds suspicion that he knew what was actually going on.  There are only two possibilities of where this could lead, either he helps the contestants or he attempts to capture and kill them once again.  The only logical reason I can deduct from him having an apartment with keys in the only building with power in an evacuated town is that he is there to oversee the experiment at both the science center and the progress of the show.  I think his final line was both telling and confusing as he didn't embrace Joyce nor did he seem pleased that the group was alive and well meaning that he knew of the events that had transpired and believed them to be dead.  I don't believe that he is part of Esther's betrayal as she wasn't aware of the town or had any assurances she would be able to escape and travel over one-hundred miles to a rendezvous point with Buckley, I think it's much more likely he is the overseer of the entire operation.
• My husband does a lot of my editing and he included this bit, which goes along with a lot of my ideas but I thought I'd add his theory as well: What if Jonathon Buckley is "the mastermind" and he evacuated "the town" because he knew "the contestants" were getting too close to it and he couldn't risk them telling "the town-folk" about what they've experienced since "the show" started? Maybe he says "you're not supposed to be here" because he thinks they should have stayed in the settlement like his previous test groups did. I think he is in charge of the military and is in the town with "his army" who is looking for the recently-escaped contestants.
  
  
  
  
  

That wraps up all of the smaller questions we saw throughout the season and while some were answered, some have logical explanations and others are still a complete mystery, many provide a backbone to the bigger theories and storylines presented.  Let's jump into those as they represent the larger picture of what's really going on in Siberia!

The Bigger Questions:

This one is hard to sum up because my theory crisscrosses throughout all the bigger questions as I believe they are tied together.  The best way I can think of to lay this out clearly is to give simple answers and then provide a short summary or tale of what I believe is going on based on the real facts as well as what we have seen throughout the course of Siberia.  Without out further ado, here we go!

1. What caused the Tunguska Event?
• While there are a plethora of theories out there, many of which you can find in my Siberia: Facts Edition, I believe the cause adopted for the show is the ever-popular alien theory.  In 1908 when a "second sun" descended onto the Tunguska area of Siberia it was actually the alien cauldrons (see below) activating, possibly to destroy an incoming meteor. 
• Another plausible theory weaves the lore into the event as the tribes in the area were feuding, shamans sent various curses to other tribes causing disease when finally a wicked shaman called upon the god Ogdy (see below), who I believe to be based on the extraterrestrial presence in the woods, to destroy the neighboring clans.  The aliens then activated the cauldrons to aid the local tribe thus causing the Tunguska Event.
  
  
  
  
  
2. What happened to the original settlers?
• I have read that many fled leaving all their belongings including pots burning, etc. when the Tunguska Event began.  This could be the case of the original settlers, however I have another theory that not only explains more of the strange events but also leaves room for a more complex storyline in subsequent seasons:
• The effects of the Tunguska Event caused the settlers to mutate into the Valleymen.  This would explain how Sam found a bracelet from 1908 in shallow waters, as one of the beasts continued to wear it in remembrance of their old self.  It also may give credence to the idea that the reason the Evenkis began a feud with the Valleymen as described by the cave paintings as well as Merilik's tale, is because the settlers blamed the tribe for their mutation.  In addition, while the Valleymen attacked the producers' camp they left the settlement alone, possibly connecting with the contestants who now inhabited the settlers' old home.  I also saw the tiger and Natalie as a type of warning not to stray too far away from the settlement as if the Valleymen wanted them to survive.
3. What is the beast in the woods? & Who are the Valleymen?
• I feel comfortable claiming the Valleymen and the beast are synonymous.  The creature we saw attack Johnny and Joyce had the same foot structure as the footprints that Merilik explained was the mark of the Valleymen as well as the tracks Daniel found at the site of Tommy's death.  I also am pretty happy with the conclusion that they are aliens as there are many who believe both the Tunguska Event and the cauldrons are extraterrestrial in nature.  The one thing that I think is still unknown, is whether the aliens actually ever visited Siberia as the Valleymen may be the original settlers who were transformed during the Tunguska Event.  While I at first believed that Miljan was related to the Evenki tribe, he seemed terrified by their presence and we learned that his actual connection was to the Valleymen.  If the Valleymen began as humans he could still be related to one of the original settlers and through their alien technologies or abilities they are able to communicate with him through telekinesis that sparked the Evenkis belief that shaman could inhabit one's body.
  
  
  
  [image taken from CreativeCOW.net]
  
  
4. How does Ogdy tie into everything?
• I think that it is a logical conclusion that in the realm of the show, the Evenkis' belief in Ogdy may very well stem from the extraterrestrials.  Similar to the movie Alien Vs. Predator where the predators would visit the Earth every so often to show off to the humans and maintain their god-like status or even in real history as many believe aliens helped ancient civilizations build their amazing structures such as the Egyptian pyramids, Ogdy or the Valleymen have been to the area before the Tunguska Event and with their superior technology the locals believed them to be gods.  Their bird-like feet, the ability of their cauldrons to cause events in the sky and their abilities or technology that enables them to inhabit a human body all line up with the Evenkis' beliefs of what the Ogdy are capable of.   
5. What is the significance of the cauldron and its markings?
• I think the most important thing to take away from the cauldron was the sixteen dots in a circular formation.  While there is conjecture about this being related to the contestants, I don't really think that is the most plausible explanation as two were eliminated right off the bat and there were never sixteen contestants staying at the settlement.  Instead, I think it is related to the 1908 settlers.  In my first theories post, I hypothesized the possibility that the original settlers were somehow mutated through alien technology and might be the creatures in the woods.  The sixteen dots strengthen this theory as they may have engraved the cauldron after the Tunguska Event changed them, or the markings appeared on the cauldron as a result of the transformation.  In addition, I had wondered about how Sam's bracelet from a 1908 settler ended up in the shallow waters today.  One of my theories was that a beast still wore it as a reminder of who they used to be.  If this is the case and the original sixteen settlers were transformed it connects a good amount of dots to create a plausible theory, including why they became enemies with the Evenkis as they were believed to have caused the event.
• The wedge-shaped markings on the outside however are cuneiform, the first known writing system from ancient Mesopotamia.  While this doesn't tell us much, it does line up with the symbol of the Valleymen as it is the Mesopotamian icon for Anu or god which connects the cauldrons to the Valleymen strengthening the theory that they are responsible for the Tunguska Event.
  
  
  
  
  
6. How many of the eerie events are caused by the producers?
• I actually think this is a smaller question, but added it here for clarity.  I don't believe the producers are the cause of any of the strange events.  I will go into more detail below, but basically I think that the majority of the producers believed the show to be nothing more than another reality/survival competition and other than employing Joyce to stir things up they had no knowledge of the other events in play.
7. What going on with the Russian Science Center, the experiment and the other test groups?
• This question is probably the most important of the bunch!  I think that the Russian Science Center was created in order to recreate the Tunguska Event or perhaps more importantly harness the power of the cauldrons to be used as a weapon and uncover the mystery of the Valleymen as they are connected to the device.  The genetic tests prove that they are trying to recreate the beast or at least study it.  The falcon adds to this as the Valleymen have bird features as well as their connection to Ogdy who is the god of thunder and related to the Ogdy birds.  I believe that the Tesla Tower is their way of using modern science to create this vast weapon, but I don't think they were successful in doing so.  The other Revealers show that the scientists have done previous experiments with primates and I think this was to draw out the Valleymen or trick them into using their cauldrons.  When that failed, the mysterious leader of this project concluded that human test subjects might be just what they needed and thus the reality competition was born.  As I said above, I don't think the producers had anything to do with the strange events but rather the scientists.  The speaker was likely a tool to keep the primates and later humans inside the test area or the settlement while the Revealer was a reward program enticing them not to stray.  However, while primates may have been easy to control, when the humans did in fact entice the beast and the cauldrons were activated this caused their support system, the producers, to be attacked.  With no reason to remain in the settlement and perish, as the Revealer did not offer enough motivation for them to stay and the unknown creature in the woods did not stand up against the fear of death, unlike the primates the contestants wandered away from the settlement and became too close to discovering the hidden agenda of the show.  Enter strike team!   
8. Who are the armed men who came to execute the contestants?
• We learned that they were the ones responsible for the deaths of the scientists and likely destroyed the beacon and the information on the experiment at the Russian Science Center in order to keep the group from discovering the real motives behind the show as well as contacting the outside world and sharing their findings.  These men had every intention on executing the contestants as well all to keep the project they work for secretive.  We also discovered they were searching for a weapon which I described my thoughts about in the above section.  I ultimately believe they are hired guns working for the experiment and the mysterious leader behind both the science center and the reality show.
  
  
  
  
  
9. Is the show real? (Not referring to the reality platform used)
• I cannot stress enough how much I believe that the reality show was real, not a huge production just put on for the contestants with faked helicopter crashes and evacuated camps and towns.  My reasoning is quite simple, why would they hire Joyce as an actress to move the story along by creating conflicts and love interests if they had no intention of eventually airing it?  In addition, now that we are certain Esther stole the cash prize inside the Revealer, why would there be a prize if the producers didn't have any intention of the show continuing as normal with an ultimate winner or winners as planned?  I believe it is similar to Argo, where a movie was made and no shortcuts were taken including promotional material, production companies, funding and even a table read in costume while the entire pre-production was a simple ruse for ulterior motives.  Similar here, I think that the creator is likely the leader of the experiment whom employed an entire television crew to make a show to further their underlining goals.  Most of the crew was probably in the dark and thought they were simply creating another show while Buckley may be the mastermind behind it all or another pawn an overseer to ensure the show continued as planned while aware of the real reason for bringing the contestants to this remote area of Siberia.   
10. What is the significance of the skeleton wearing an identical necklace as Sabina? & How does time disturbances play into the show?
• This one is tricky and probably the most pondered question of the show.  My only thought is that Sabina did in fact find her own skeleton which isn't physically possible without bringing time disturbances into the story.  I don't believe that pieces of time are flashing or anything similar to that.  I am a bit obsessed with string theory and while anything is possible in a fictional show, they often mess up the basic rules of time-travel or time-loops in television and movies so I cannot say definitively but I can present the only real possibilities that make sense.
• Time doesn't just change randomly it happens in relation to an event or possibly a portal like a wormhole.  Due to this, the only theories I can ascertain is that either the second Tunguska event the contestants witnessed pushed them through time, which I don't think to be the case as the story is very linear and had the group been pushed back in time it is likely they would run into their former selves or if they were transported to before the show began the settlement wouldn't be in the same condition and the producers' camp wouldn't have been set up yet.
• The second theory which is my favorite amongst the two is that the cauldron or some other device opens up a portal to another world or dimension in which the Valleymen originated from.  My thoughts are that when the Valleymen travel through this portal that brings them to our world as time doesn't run the same course in their dimension they could enter the portal today and when they exit it could be either the future or the past.  As we know the Valleymen remove and at times bring back bodies, as was the case with the tiger and Natalie, I think that this is what has happened to Sabina as well.  She dies at some point in the future, which we have not witnessed yet, her body is removed and taken through the portal for whatever reason the Valleymen do so.  Later the beasts then bring her body back to Siberia, however as time runs differently on their side, they emerge before the contestants have arrived at the settlement.  Thus the body decayed over time and when Sabina did come across it her death had not yet happened.  I do have to say that I'm disappointed this point was not brought up in the storyline this season, nor did Sabina ever share this information with any of the other contestants.  This idea also connects the atomic clocks as with a nearby portal the gravity the device uses to detect the time would be different thus providing two distinct readings.    

Lastly, I would like to tell the tale of Siberia from my deductions, clues from the show and the real history entangled into the story in a section named:

What really happened?
Long ago extraterrestrials visited Earth and installed the mysterious metal cauldrons which functioned as a weapon that would blast oncoming meteors and other projectiles about to hit the planet.  Similar to the movie Alien Vs. Predator the extraterrestrials became known as gods to the locals whom they named Ogdy, able to cause fire in the sky.  Over the years the shamans became close to these gods because their spirits lived in the same realm after death, this could connect to why the bodies were removed from the producers' camp, the helicopter as well as Natalie and the tiger carcass.  Possibly, the Ogdy also took the bodies of the shaman hence the belief they lived in the same place.  In 1908 while feuding with other tribes a shaman called upon the Ogdy or the aliens for help with their disputes and the result was the Tunguska Event, which not only scared away other tribes but possibly mutated the original settlers into the god-like beings.  Infuriated with the Evenki as the cause of their mutation they waged war against them and the Evenki saw the materialization of their god as a punishment for abusing their powers.  Finally able to make a truce the Valleymen and the Evenki lived in peace for over one hundred years until scientists began a project in attempt to harness the powers of the cauldrons and the genetic mysteries of the Valleymen.  While at first the Russian group used modern technology to create a Tesla Tower and genetic manipulations to study the beast, they were unsuccessful and sought out other routes.  Using behavioral modification methods, the scientists placed primates into the abandoned settlement with the Revealer providing rewards for staying as well as speakers striking fear into the animals preventing them from venturing away.  This too rendered futile as the Valleymen showed no interest in the primates nor did they activate the cauldrons during this time.  A new decision was made to use human test subjects to recreate the environment of the Tunguska Event exactly in hopes that this would finally draw out the Valleymen and force them to tip their hat and activate the cauldrons.  However, a dilemma presented itself; how could they obtain human subjects while still keeping their research a secret?  Thus a reality television show is created, with a cash prize, a slew of contestants, producers, crew, and an actress who are all in the dark about the real motives behind the creation of the show.  Luckily, the plan worked as the humans drew out the Valleymen and the cauldrons were activated but unfortunately this also caused their cover to break down as the producers' camp was attacked and no one was left to aid the contestants or keep the show running and in desperation they set out to find help.  This put the experiment in danger of being discovered and even worse leaked to the outside world.  As a preventative measure the project leader sent in a strike team to eliminate the scientists and their work as well as destroy the radio tower to keep the contestants from contacting outside help.  Nevertheless, they continued to persevere as Daniel constructed the loop antenna in which the project intercepted the transmission and went in to finish the group off.  In addition they were in search of the recently fired cauldrons, the reason they had begun their project in the first place as they were determined to see it through despite the contestants being a constant thorn in their side.    

Alright!  I think that sums up all the questions and mysteries presented throughout the course of this season of Siberia!  Thank you all for reading and as always I would love to hear you thoughts so please comment below.  Don't forget to continue tweeting #SiberiaSeason2 as a second season is needed to wrap up at least some of these lingering questions.  I thoroughly enjoyed the show as it made me think, it was smart and well executed and unlike so many of the other television shows out there!  Keep theorizing and check back here or at skh.xi34.com for my new blogs on fall television which will begin in the next week.  Enjoy!

*On a different note, I want to thank all of the readers who were so supportive of my medical conundrum and difficulties.  The outcome of my trip was another recommended brain surgery, this time across the country which I now must decide if the benefits out weigh the risks.  Again thank you for your kind words and prayers as they are much needed and much appreciated!

above image taken from nbc.com/siberia
"Siberia in Retrospect" image also taken from nbc.com/siberia and edited by Jeremy Heavner (xi34.com)

Siberia: Facts Edition

Over the course of Siberia I have dedicated hours to researching the various facts behind the storylines that have been presented.  It was no easy task.  While some subjects, like the Tunguska Event, have a plethora of scientific as well as more conspiracy-related information out there, there was little about the Evenkis and the research for the tower was a game of connecting the actual facts out there with the creative direction of the show.  Regardless, the amount of real-life mysteries and data weaved into each episode has been one of the wonderful aspects of Siberia.  The idea of using a reality-show platform for a drama series was a brilliant one in my opinion, as though it was scripted and "fake", as so many have pointed out, in a lot of ways it was more real than most of the dramas out there.  The actual forensic techniques that were a huge contributor to the CSI franchise's popularity as well as the flux of criminal forensic majors after the show debuted is comparable to the wealth of real-life history and science integrated into Siberia.  It proves that people have a desire to explore the unknown and with Siberia it made perfect sense to adopt the reality format because so much of the storyline is rooted in reality.  Siberia makes you wonder, what caused the Tunguska Event, as the science community hasn't been able to come to a consensus, as well as the looming question; could this actually happen as the Evenki people, the Siberian cauldrons and the Tesla Tower are all very real making this journey somewhat less inconceivable as it leans away from fantastical drama towards truth.  However, the writers of Siberia have created an amazing story, like the Indiana Jones of television, as the holy grail may exist or may not, the adventure to locate it takes the audience on a tight rope that wobbles between the possible and the extraordinary!  I have been blessed with many readers, implying people want to know more about the concrete mysteries behind the show, so I thought I'd put all the facts in one place to make it easier to absorb all the information.  Without further ado let's jump into Siberia: Facts Edition!
*Note: This is a special edition post, if you're looking for my review, recap and theories on episode 10 "Strange Bedfellows" see Siberia Reveals More!

1. The Tunguska Event

• The Tunguska Event is the basis of Siberia as the description of the show characterized how over 100 years ago an unexplained event occurred in the very location of where sixteen contestants would descend, unaware of the mysterious past, to attempt to survive the winter with a half-million-dollar cash prize rewarded to those who are able to persevere until the end.  This is a real modern day mystery with a plethora of suppositions as to what actually caused the event with multiple scientists and conspiracy theorists who have travelled to the Valley of Death to investigate its origins.  At 7:15 AM on June 30, 1908 the ground shook as the sky lit up in what observations recorded as fire in the sky caused by a second sun that fell into the Siberian wilderness, the biggest event of its kind in known history.   
• While researchers have tried to explain it away as a comet or meteor, no one can seem to come to a consensus as the minerals found and the eyewitness accounts don't quite line up with either theory.
• Atop that there was no evidence left behind, such as a piece of a meteor or comet like would be expected.  Instead for the days following the event the skies continued to glow which is a phenomenon relating to ice particles (which were found at the site) that has also been observed when space shuttles enter the earth's atmosphere.
• The shape of the impact zone had what is referred to as a "wingspan" resembling a butterfly.
• To make this mystery even more eerie, when overhead photos were taken of the site, they were ordered to be burned.
• Fringe theories range from black holes, experiments gone wrong and of course extraterrestrial involvement.
• The observations of the impact site revealed what has been compared to Hiroshima, over the blast radius rather than a hole or crater, as would be expected with a meteor crash, a large scorched area was seen where the trees in the middle of the site stood upright stripped of their branches and as it spanned out, over 2,150 kilometers, the trees farther away were knocked down pointing away from the center.
• When a group, lead by Leonid Kulik, went to study the impact site of the Tunguska Event in 1927, their local guides refused to go too far in fear of the "Valleymen".  Locals believed the event was caused by the god Ogdy as punishment and were terrified to venture into the area as it was cursed (see Evenki section below).  Interestingly in line with the show, Kulik's journey was also set back by an unusually heavy snowfall and around the impact zone instead of the crater he was expecting to find he witnessed burnt trees standing upright and "peculiar flat holes" which might have been the area of the cauldrons (see below).
• So how does all this connect to the show?
• One idea is that the original event was caused by an alien space craft.  It would explain why it left no remnants; either because the craft was moved, left earth, or has the ability to cloak itself in order to not be seen.  (I realize that I am talking about a real event and am implying there are actually aliens in the Siberian woods, but I'm going out on a limb in order to theorize what's happening on the fictional show).
• Due to the fact there was no evidence of a black hole exiting the opposite side of Earth, it could possibly have been a wormhole which is believed in fringe science to have the capabilities to transfer objects, people, beasts, etc. through space and time.  I like this theory a bit more because there is no need to explain how a spacecraft left or remained undetected, rather it could be that the wormhole simply transported alien creatures from light-years away to earth and they remain in the Siberian woods.  It also may answer some other questions that have been presented throughout the season but as I now am leaning towards the idea that if there is a wormhole, it would be located inside the cauldrons which I will discuss below. 
• We now know that my original hypothesis of the Valleymen being synonymous with the beast or beasts in the woods is correct.  I believe this is what the cameraman was referring to after Tommy's attack when he repeated "I saw them" in Russian.  Another big event was the mauled tiger at the end of "Lyin' and Tiger and Bare", that posed the question: why would the beast attack the tiger?  I think that because it obviously didn't consume the animal and it was placed right outside the settlement, it served as the beast's way of warning the contestants not to veer too deep into the woods and then the tiger was removed leaving no trace that it was ever there.  We also saw this with Natalie as her body was placed outside the settlement, and then removed, with the same wound to the abdomen.  I also believe the Valleymen were responsible for the attack on the producers' camp possibly instigated by the lights in the sky caused by the tower (below) as well as the fact that, like Tommy, they trespassed into the territory of the beast.  As we also know that Miljan is connected to them in some way, I believe that while the beast(s) may be alien they are a human(or human-like)-bird hybrid that may be the origin of the Evenkis' belief in Ogdy as discussed below. 

2. The Evenki Beliefs

First I want to include a makeshift glossary of the terms used below for easier understanding:

Ogdy (Agdy) - the Evenki word for "thunder".  Also used to describe the god of thunder as well as the thunderbirds who are made of iron and the flap of their wings cause the thunder sound while lightening shoots out of their fiery eyes.

Khergu - the lower world.  Here is where Ogdy, birds and god, live.  It is also the location of the souls of the shaman or high priests of the Evenki tribes.  Due to the fact they both dwell in this place they maintain a close friendship that is passed on to the descendants of the shaman.

Khargi - evil spirits.  I have seen it in some readings as synonymous with "devil".  The Evenkis believe the Khargi actually instruct the shamans.

Magankan - wicked shaman of an Evenki tribe.

I battled with how to lay out the facts in the most simplistic form, but now that we have all the terms straight I'll simply tell the story ethnographer Innokentiy Suslov was told by upwards of ten Evenki tribes about their thoughts regarding what really caused the Tunguska Event, along with their religious beliefs that may explain what's really going on with Miljan.

• There had been tribal feuds between multiple Evenki people thus the shamans began to send evil spirits causing disease to each other.  They then believe that the wicked shaman, named Magankan, called upon the god Ogdy to destroy the neighboring clans and this was the cause of the Tunguska Event, which precipitated the inhabitants of that area to flee in every direction leaving all of their personal items behind.  After this, the other Evenki tribes refused to travel into the area because they believe that only Ogdy could live in the location of Magankan's Evenki tribe. 
• While in my previous posts I have stated that I believe the humans in the woods surrounding the settlement were responsible for the trap as well as the spear (see: Siberia Theories That Will Blow Your Mind!), I now feel confident they are the Evenki tribe led by the shaman Magankan or their descendants.  The Tunguska Event scared off all other tribes from the area and possibly the original 1908 settlers as well.  What this information added, was that this tribe was the one that believed to have called upon the god Ogdy and that they are likely a specific sect of Evenkis who now must deal with the Valleymen as they believe it is a punishment for their sins.  I believe the sins they refer to is the misuse of power to eliminate their rivals as when Magankan called upon Ogdy which caused the Tunguska Event and with it came the Valleymen a materialization of Ogdy.
• Interestingly, Magankan was rumored to have become embodied by the Khargi, or spirits of the lower world.  To prove this, Magankan had tribal members shoot him and he would catch the bullet after it left his body and present it to them, in addition he had them stab him and exhibited that no wound or blood could be found.
• This brings me back to the cave paintings which showed the beast and tribal members throwing spears at it.  I have to wonder if this evil and all-powerful shaman somehow was effected by the event, possibly through mutation from the actual cause or intervention from the Valleymen, which strengthened their beliefs.  They saw a shaman who had become one with the Ogdy and possibly they were not attacking him, but rather performing this demonstration that proved he could not be wounded.
• The Evenki believe in three worlds: upper, middle and lower.  While normal tribe members couldn't visit the upper or lower realm the shamans would travel to these places during their rituals.  (Remember the mushrooms?)
• When a shaman died their soul called the "omi" left their body but did not die, it lived on in the world until choosing a new person, normally a descendant that could skip multiple generations, and inhabited their body.
• As stated above, due to both Ogdy and the souls of the shaman living in Khergu they developed a friendship and wicked shaman can use this friendship to call upon Ogdy to destroy groups of people he hates.  (This is important because remember Miljan calls Ogdy his "old friend")
• This leads me to: What's going on with Miljan, and the change in his behavior we have seen since his discovery of the Ogdy totem pole.  He has been guided to the journal and to the Ogdy statue, somehow instinctively knowing its real name.  In addition, as he told Neeko he didn't need to read Russian to understand the journal and was more inquisitive about the totem pole and Sabina's necklace, as well as carving the compass symbol into his arm, making me think that these items contain some kind of importance.  In the episode "Out of the Frying Pan" we saw him cover the camera in the cabin with Irene inside masking his actions, as well as show us a sinister smile as if he knows just what will happen next.   In "First Snow", we witnessed him attempting to kill various contestants and kidnap Irene while disappearing into the woods as well as somehow knowing what Esther had taken from the Revealer though he was nowhere near when it happened.  While Irene ended up being rescued, I don't think that was his intention due to his previous attempts at her life.
• I believe that his body has been inhabited by the "omi" of shaman past, possibly Magankan, who is guiding him and changing his personality as he now is able to understand the journal and what is going on around them as well as what is to come more clearly.  This also fits into my theory about the group, or at least some of them, being descendants of Siberia and there for a reason, as the soul of the shaman only pass into relatives.  If he is in fact inhabited or possessed by Magankan or another wicked shaman, their belief is that the Khargi, or evil spirit, tells them what to do, which is why we see Miljan acting so strangely and doing things that seem out of his character
• The Valleymen are the manifestation of the god and thus the belief that shamans can posses a human might originate in extraterrestrial technology or abilities.  Therefore while Miljan is possessed by an omi, it is one of the Valleymen, or by use of their technology, which is why he has carved their symbol into his arm and has been guided by them after his discovery of the Ogdy statue as I think that Ogdy and the Valleymen are one and the same.  Or more importantly their belief in Ogdy originated with the Valleymen.
  
  

3. The Tesla Tower

• The Wardenclyffe Tower was built between 1898 and 1907 in Long Island, but was shut down and abandoned before the Tunguska Event.  The idea behind it was to create wireless communication, basically what we have today, that would consist of a series of towers using Tesla's famous coil as an energy source. 
• Based on this, it made no sense why the tower that shocked Johnny (see: Siberia Gets Attacked) would have anything to do with the strange occurrences in Siberia.  However, I dug deeper into Tesla's later inventions as well as other technologies in use today and was able to connect them into a working theory. 
• Tesla's work in the 1930's was on a high-energy particle beam called Teleforce that was dubbed the death ray.  It worked by creating a stream of charged mercury or tungsten powered by the famous Tesla Coil that directed a beam of energy into the ionosphere.  In addition, to create the necessary equilibrium the tower must be firmly supported in the ground.  This connects the presence of a similar tower in Siberia, and while the Wardenclyffe Tower was created for telecommunication, it was a unique power source that could be utilized for various reasons.  The Teleforce, powered by the Tesla Coil, is an example of a directed-energy weapon which have been known to cause physical, physiological and psychological effects.  This technology is known by the Russian Armed Forces.
• The fact that the Teleforce was not created until the 1930's, and we only have Tesla's word that he had successfully invented it even then, raises more doubts with me that the 1908 Tunguska event was caused by this death ray.  However, it makes perfect sense that the Russian scientists at the outpost were attempting to recreate the event and/or the beast using a directed-energy weapon which was activated in the episode "Fire in the Sky" (see: Siberia Gets a Little Stranger).
• Due to the fact that this type of weapon can cause psychological manifestations, it would explain Johnny and Joyce's confusion when the tower was activated and they were alone in the woods without cover.
• In addition the fact that it needed to be firmly planted in the ground would explain the earthquake the group experienced before the lights appeared.
• I also found information regarding the use of directed-energy in order to modify the weather.  In addition to HAARP (see below), there is knowledge of a Russian company that has been using this technology since at least 1992.
• I think it's obvious that the Russian Science Center the hikers found has been in operation since much earlier than the nineties.  Based on their equipment, it seems like it was possibly the test center for the creation of such devises starting around World War II.   
• HAARP is a household name amongst conspiracy theorists and refers to the "High Frequency Active Auroral Research Project" in Alaska.  It also uses energy to create a beam that heats up a portion of the ionosphere and is able to direct this energy to a specific area of the globe.  So here we have again, very similar to the particle beam created by Tesla that is powered by his tower, a directed-energy device that heats up the ionosphere.  However here, unlike with the Teleforce, the main purpose is to cause atmospheric changes that effect the weather rather than obliterate a location. 
• This could explain how the contestants of Siberia went from sunny hot weather to freezing foggy snow.  It also interests me that the contestants seem to be following in the footprints of Kulik as both his journal and the video footage are discovered and the fact that he too was blocked by unusual snow and took interest in the Valleymen. 
• Another HAARP possibility is the fact that it is believed to be able to block signals such as satellite, TV and radio frequencies.  However, since we saw the radio tower destroyed I'm not sure if that is the current case on Siberia, but possibly why Sabina was unable to use the radio at the producers' camp as it was being blocked by the station.
• There are a plethora of similarities between HAARP and the Teleforce as they use the exact same methods.  This means the center found by the hikers could be capable of causing the lights in the sky from the heated ionosphere, the decimated area from a directed-energy beam, the change in weather, and the psychological effects experienced by Joyce and Johnny during this process. 
• Another interesting fact I learned while researching, was that HAARP can create a protective dome over a specific area of Earth.  While I don't think this is what's going on in Siberia, Under the Dome lovers can take pleasure in the idea that Stephen King's science fiction is not fiction anymore! 

left: Tower found by the "hikers" in Siberia;  right: 1904 image of the Wardenclyffe Tower

In conclusion, the basic idea I was able to ascertain through the electrical engineering technical aspect, is that the tower was built to utilize Earth's natural energy field, more specifically the balance between the ground conduction and the ionosphere to charge particles.  This has the ability to send a directed-energy beam to other areas of the Earth with the power to decimate people or a habitat, alter the weather and deliver psychological effects to the people within the radius.  The ignition of such an energy beam could also cause the ground to shake and the sky to light up, all events we have seen over the last few episodes of Siberia. 
 

4. The Cauldrons

While little is known about these strange dome-like structures I gained most of my info from UFO enthusiasts and even with a detailed web search could not find anything absolute nor alternate theories other than aliens.  I did only collect data from the most credible sites but as of now these strange cauldrons are believed to be extraterrestrial in origin.  Here's a recap of the data I found. 

• In 1854 Richard Carl Maak led an expedition into the Valley of Death and in his journal wrote of large mysterious metal domes that the locals called cauldrons.
• Between 1933-1947 three confirmations of their existence were discovered.  Seven cauldrons in total were discovered measuring from 20-30 feet in diameter with strange vegetation surrounding the area.  During this trip strange side-effects were experienced such as skin diseases and loss of hair.
• Ivan Mackerle finally went to find out if these tales were simply legend or really existed and video taped his journey.  He found odd circular patterns in the grassland and when investigated noticed the ground had an unusual texture.  In the center his team probed down with a pole and found a hard structure underneath that sounded metallic and hollow.  In addition the magnetic field surrounding the believed cauldrons gave off strange variations.  He took this as proof of cauldrons sunken into the earth.  Members of his team as well as Mackerle himself suffered the strange side effects as they became ill and experienced dizziness, nausea, fever and trouble walking.  They hypothesized that their sickness could've been caused by radiation from these mysterious structures.
• According to local lore the cauldrons were left after an ancient battle between extraterrestrials where fire balls shot up from the earth then, accompanied by a deafening sound the surrounding trees were destroyed.  After the battle had concluded, the locals claimed they came across the metal structures, in which they in turn named cauldrons, that later sunk into the marshy swamps of Siberia.  They believe that the cauldrons have been activated throughout the years as a sort of defense mechanism that shoots projectiles heading towards Earth.  The cauldrons are even amongst the varying theories regarding the cause of the Tunguska Event. 
• Due to the fact the cauldrons have been in existence for so long, it is unlikely they are man-made leading scientists to wonder if their origins are extraterrestrial.
• In addition, the metallic material the cauldrons are composed of rules them out as a natural phenomenon.  
• I have even found accounts of people who claim to have attempted to collect samples over the years but have been unsuccessful due to the strange material they are composed of as well as their sharp edges.
• As multiple accounts claim there is unusual energy radiating from the domes, some far-out theorists believe that inside there exists a portal to another world.
• So how does all this connect to the show?
• Merilik's story falls right in line with the ancient lore I was able to find as they have been described as causing dizziness and nausea, disease and the elders have labeled them cursed.
• I don't think Johnny and Joyce were effected by this area as Merilik claims it causes people to lose their way and they both made it back to the settlement with no problem.  In addition she doesn't speak of it causing loss of memory which is what they both experienced.
• I think the biggest link to the show that we can take from these structures is that most who have studied them believe they are extraterrestrial in nature meaning that my original theories on aliens and wormholes come back into play as the Valleymen may be from another world.

left: Mysterious "hut" seen in the show;  right: Drawing of actual cauldron found in Siberia.

This is a lot of information to take in, and while I separated my sections into the major real historical and scientific facts that relate to the show, I'd like to sum my theory all up in an easy to read explanation that is supported by the data I have gathered:

What is going on in Siberia?

In 1908, tribes in the Tunguska Valley feuded and while their shamans sent various curses back and forth one wicked Shaman dared to call upon the Ogdy of the lower world to destroy their enemies.  Soon after the earth shook and what to looked to be fire in the sky overcame the Siberian wilderness, an unidentified object decimated an area of the forest and struck fear into the other tribes as they fled vowing never to return to the territory as along with the Tunguska Event came the Valleymen, likely alien in origin, who seemed to be indestructible as the locals were unsuccessful in their attempts to kill it or them.  They viewed the Valleymen as an embodiment of their god Ogdy, a cross between a human and a thunderbird, that had come to their land as a punishment for the misuse of power.  While no other would dare venture into the land as they believed it to be cursed by Ogdy, and the mysterious Valleymen now inhabited the area, those who had called upon him finally made peace with the strange new creature as they promised to stay in the Valley of Death and never cross into the Valley of Men.  Along with the aliens came the cauldrons, unexplained metal structures that contain a wormhole or something similar that transports them back to their world.  The area of the cauldrons is cursed and causes strange effects on the mind.  Sometime after Kulik's 1927 journey a group of scientists began studying the strange beast, likely to capture it, utilize its technology or duplicate its impenetrable form.  They began conducting research into Kulik's expedition and did a series of primate tests in which scientist used behavioral techniques to keep the animals in the settlement by rewarding them through various Revealers and projecting strange sounds emanating from the speakers so they were too frightened to enter the surrounding woods.  While their tests didn't get them any closer to obtaining pictures of the creature or nabbing one to study, they decided real human test subjects and artificially recreating the effects of the Tunguska Event would be the logical next step for their experiment.  Thus, a reality show was created in which the cast and crew were both unaware of the ulterior motives of the creator as now sixteen human contestants inhabited the settlement.  Using the Tesla Tower and human subjects, they were able to entice the Valleymen.  However, unlike the primates, the humans dared to venture deeper into the woods violating the treaty between the Valleymen and the Evenkis.  This worked as the Valleymen attacked the producers' camp leaving the contestants stranded in this deadly place bringing out a unique human feature; to persevere when all hope is lost, no matter how impossible, to continue to try.  The fact that the contestants would leave the settlement was a huge crux in the leader's plan, who I believe to be both the head of the science experiment and the creator of the reality show.  So, using the powers of the Tesla Tower, they manipulated they weather, as they were aware that during Kulik's expedition a freak snowstorm had forced him to return to his starting point and they hoped it would either have the same effect on the contestants as they would backtrack to the settlement or die in the harsh conditions.  However, with a combination of pure luck and skill the hikers persevered and continued towards the beacon where the secrets behind the testing lay.  This forced them to attempt to cover their tracks, murdering the scientists at the lab, destroying the computers with information about their experiment and knocking out the tower so the contestants would not be able to contact the outside world.  Meanwhile, another problem in their plan emerged as the Evenki people helped the remaining contestants at the settlement, informed them about Ogdy, the Valleymen and the truce that had existed for a century as well as guided them to the science center.  I believe that in the finale we will discover how much of my tale is true as the contestants' distress call was likely intercepted by the mastermind behind it all who will send an execution troop rather than saviors to the outpost.  I also think that Miljan's connection to the beast(s), through the guidance he receives from his possession will play a part as perhaps the Valleymen want to protect Miljan from harm and will attack the soldiers to keep him safe.  In addition, the chemicals in the lab combined with Daniel's knowledge, and a group effort to help, will have them making their own incendiary devices to also play a part in overcoming the military forces.  This will leave them able to fight another day, empowered with more knowledge as they will still be stranded in Siberia leaving the show open for a second season!  Below is a list of all the strange events we have witnessed and what I think they can be attributed to as this has become a clash of locals, a possibly alien beast and scientists in which the contestants have found themselves in the middle of.

The Valleymen

• Mauling of the Tiger
• Tommy's Death
• Natalie's Death
• Attack on the Producers' Camp
• Part of the 1908 Tunguska Event
• Miljan's possession

The Cauldrons
If the cauldrons do in fact open up a wormhole to another world they may also cause time discrepancies among return.  By this I mean as a Valleyman might enter the wormhole at one point in time they could exit and find themselves in the future or the past.  This explains:

• The Skeleton with Sabina's Locket
• We have seen the beasts remove their kills with both Natalie and the Tiger but they also laid them around the settlement.  If Sabina dies in the future and her body is transported to another dimension a beast could return through the wormhole and place her body near the settlement but actually be in a time before Sabina actually ever arrived.  Therefore she would be able to come across her own decomposed body even though she hadn't died yet.
• The Atomic Clocks
• Perhaps one of the clocks has been effected by the cauldron just by being in the vicinity of it as they are believed to cause electrical discrepancies. 

The Evenkis

• The Spear
• The Mushrooms: in which they revealed were used in rituals for the shaman to see the future.

The Scientists

• Recreation of the Tunguska Event: caused the "fire in the sky" and mini-quake using tower.
• The Snow: also using the tower they manipulated the weather.
• Johnny and Joyce's blackout during the "fire in the sky"
• Why I don't believe it was the cauldrons but rather psychological effects from the tower is because the cauldrons are said to make people lose their way and both contestants made it back to the settlement fine as well as the fact that they were dazed and had memory loss which wasn't an effect in Merilik's description or my research of the cauldrons.
• The Mutated Frog: I believe this was a subject of the genetic testing that likely escaped or was let loose.
• Previous Test Groups: as stated I think that these were a first attempt to draw out the beast.  Using the Revealers and speakers to keep the primates in the settlement, they ultimately failed leading to the decision for the need of human subjects.

The Mysterious Leader

• Killed or Ordered the Killing of the Scientists in the Lab
• Destroyed or Ordered the Destruction of the Radio Beacon
• Leader of the Experimentation into Kulik's findings and the Valleymen as well as behind the genetic testing to recreate or study the beasts
• I believe they are also behind the fighter Jets we saw fly over the area
• Ordered the Creation of the Reality Show: understanding the need of human test subjects who were unaware of their ulterior motives as well as a crew to run it as if the competition was the real purpose for their presence in Siberia

I think that this all falls into a plausible theory as to the events we have witnessed on Siberia.  While I know that many of you were hoping for no aliens, the presence of the cauldrons point in that direction as well as opens up the platform for future seasons as anything is possible.  I also don't think all the mysteries will be solved in the season finale, but instead we will be left with a cliffhanger as the original plan was a storyline that could traverse five seasons and oh I hope this is so!  As always, I'd love to hear your thoughts so please comment below and don't forget to sign the Siberia Season 2 petition here as well as tweet #SiberiaSeason2 to let NBC know we want more (you can find me on Twitter here)!  My new website is currently under construction but will be fully operational soon so please bookmark skh.xi34.com, a centralized hub containing all my various blogs with much more to come in the fall! Tune into the Siberia season finale Monday, September 16 to find out how this amazing season ultimately concludes.  Enjoy!

References:

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Krystek, Lee. (2007). Leonid A. Kulik. The Virtual Exploration Society. Retrieved September 15, 2013, from http://unmuseum.mus.pa.us/kulik.htm

Mitchey179. (2012, June 22). Scientists Prove Ancient Alien Cauldrons in Siberia are Real. Scienceray. Retrieved September 15, 2013, from http://scienceray.com/earth-sciences/geology/scientists-prove-ancient-alien-cauldrons-in-siberia-are-real/

Mackerle, Ivan. (2007, December). Valley of Death. In ForteanTimes. Retrieved September 15, 2013, from
http://www.forteantimes.com/features/fbi/2800/valley_of_death.html

Rich, Mark M. (2011, September 9). Weather Warfare. In Revolutionary Methods for Political Control. Retrieved September 4, 2013, from http://newworldwar.org/weatherwar.htm

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Kryztek, Lee. The Great Siberian Explosion. The Museum of UnNatural Mystery, 1997. Retrieved August 16, 2013, from http://www.unmuseum.org/siberia.html

Suslov, Innokentiy. Evenki View of the Tunguska Event. Trans. Joachim Habeck. Comets, Culture, & Currency. Retrieved August 16, 2013, from http://abob.libs.uga.edu/bobk/evenkiv.html 

Hobden, Heather. Tunguska Event. Cosmic Elk. Retrieved August 16, 2013, from http://www.cosmicelk.net/Tungusk.htm

Fondahl, Gail. Evenki (Northern Tungus). Encyclopedia of World Cultures, 1996. Retrieved August 16, 2013, from http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Evenki.aspx

Anu. (2013, August 5). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved August 8, 2013, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Anu&oldid=567194539

Siberia. (2013, July 20). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved July 21, 2013, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Siberia&oldid=564991792

Tunguska. (2013, February 23). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved July 21, 2013, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tunguska&oldid=539818671 Siberia Reveals More