One more mystery in a Himalayas.
Decades ago the skeletal remains of hundreds of people were found at a glacial lake in the Indian Himalayas. But advancements in science have brought more questions than answers.
Tucked far up in the freezing, snow-covered mountain ranges of the Himalayas at the dizzying height of more than 15,700 feet above sea level is Roopkund Lake, a small body of water.
At roughly 130 feet (40 meters) in diameter, the lake is less than the width of a football field. But the little lake has a big reputation. It's where the mystery of the dead is still very much alive.
The body of water, commonly known as "Skeleton Lake," is the final resting place for what scientists estimate to be 500 to 800 sets of human remains. It's a mysterious lake where hundreds of people met death and the icy Himalayas continued to preserve their remains.
“If you read about it or try to imagine it, I think that’s when it feels very spooky," journalist Neelima Vallangi told AccuWeather from her home in Kathmandu, Nepal. "That 500 to 800 skeletons are lying abandoned in the mountains deep in the Himalayas. It feeds your imagination."
Frozen Roopkund Lake at sunrise. (Photo/Getty Images)
In 1942, an Indian forest official discovered the skeletal remains scattered in and around the lake. He reported the strange discovery, but it wasn't made public until the late 1950s. As National Geographic reported, "In the 1950s, one explorer described the site to an Indian radio station as a 'ghastly scene that made us catch our breath.'"
It was initially believed that the skeletons were Japanese soldiers or Tibetan traders who died due to an epidemic or from exposure to the unforgiving elements.
However, forensic analysis in 2004 revealed unhealed injuries on several skulls that led scientists to conclude that a group of Indian pilgrims, both men and women, assisted by local porters from the region, were struck by giant hail at Roopkund in a single event in the 9th century.
Skeletal remains scattered at Roopkund Lake. (Photo credit: Vyshakh Nair at Instagram.com/oneintheorangejacket
As Neelima Vallangi wrote for the BBC, "They were believed to have been on a revered, once-in-a-12-year Hindu pilgrimage called Nanda Devi Raj Jat Yatra, an ancient tradition that continues to this day. Roopkund is on the way to Homkund, the final destination of this arduous foot journey."
The theory was plausible at the time. The group comprised both men and women of various ages, which ruled out the possibility that the remains belonged to soldiers.
But from a meteorological perspective, "killer hail" is an unlikely culprit due to the high altitude of Roopkund Lake, according to AccuWeather meteorologists.
At such high elevation, there wouldn't appear to be enough heat or moisture -- both related through thermodynamics -- to breed such "killer" hail, they noted.
A map showing the location of Roopkund Lake (AccuWeather)
AccuWeather
Experts haven't completely ruled out the possibility given that this is an event that took place more than 1,000 years ago, but generally, the conditions at a location as far above sea level as Roopkund Lake would "limit repeated freeze-thaw, wet-freeze cycles" necessary to produce large hail. The conditions there would favor small and/or soft hail over large, icy hail, AccuWeather meteorologists said.
Veena Mushrif-Tripathy, professor of archaeology at Deccan College in Pune, was part of the 2004 investigation. She said no weapons or signs of combat were found at the site, but they did find musical instruments, which is consistent with old folk stories of pilgrims traveling on the Nanda Devi Raj Jat Yatra. The victims were also healthy when they died, which rules out a mass epidemic.
Vallangi completed the trek that leads past Roopkund Lake in September 2009. She told AccuWeather that, at the time, she was excited about hiking so high in the Himalayas.
“You have to be reasonably fit to be able to walk for five to 10 days and the temperature obviously changes, fluctuates from 20 degrees (C) in the plains or lower hills to zero or sub-zero once you reach 4,000, 5,000 meters," she said, referring to a temperature range from about 68 degrees to below freezing. "This lake is at 4,800 meters.”
Vallangi was with a large group when she first set eyes on Skeleton Lake. She said that, before the group arrived, her guide had told them the most popular story behind the human remains: Pilgrims were caught in a huge hailstorm and perished.
This was what those in Vallangi's group believed they were seeing when they stopped at Skeleton Lake one frigid morning in 2010.
“It was very freezing and it was very cold, but once the sun is up it’s like a nice ski day," she said. "It's just that early in the morning when you're walking in the dark that's when it's really cold and miserable."
Continue below.
Mystery at 'Skeleton Lake' continues to puzzle and enthrall
It captured the world's attention 80 years ago and is one of the world's longest-running cold cases. Weather has affected the investigation -- but did it also play a role in what happened there?Decades ago the skeletal remains of hundreds of people were found at a glacial lake in the Indian Himalayas. But advancements in science have brought more questions than answers.
Tucked far up in the freezing, snow-covered mountain ranges of the Himalayas at the dizzying height of more than 15,700 feet above sea level is Roopkund Lake, a small body of water.
At roughly 130 feet (40 meters) in diameter, the lake is less than the width of a football field. But the little lake has a big reputation. It's where the mystery of the dead is still very much alive.
The body of water, commonly known as "Skeleton Lake," is the final resting place for what scientists estimate to be 500 to 800 sets of human remains. It's a mysterious lake where hundreds of people met death and the icy Himalayas continued to preserve their remains.
“If you read about it or try to imagine it, I think that’s when it feels very spooky," journalist Neelima Vallangi told AccuWeather from her home in Kathmandu, Nepal. "That 500 to 800 skeletons are lying abandoned in the mountains deep in the Himalayas. It feeds your imagination."
Frozen Roopkund Lake at sunrise. (Photo/Getty Images)
In 1942, an Indian forest official discovered the skeletal remains scattered in and around the lake. He reported the strange discovery, but it wasn't made public until the late 1950s. As National Geographic reported, "In the 1950s, one explorer described the site to an Indian radio station as a 'ghastly scene that made us catch our breath.'"
It was initially believed that the skeletons were Japanese soldiers or Tibetan traders who died due to an epidemic or from exposure to the unforgiving elements.
However, forensic analysis in 2004 revealed unhealed injuries on several skulls that led scientists to conclude that a group of Indian pilgrims, both men and women, assisted by local porters from the region, were struck by giant hail at Roopkund in a single event in the 9th century.
Skeletal remains scattered at Roopkund Lake. (Photo credit: Vyshakh Nair at Instagram.com/oneintheorangejacket
As Neelima Vallangi wrote for the BBC, "They were believed to have been on a revered, once-in-a-12-year Hindu pilgrimage called Nanda Devi Raj Jat Yatra, an ancient tradition that continues to this day. Roopkund is on the way to Homkund, the final destination of this arduous foot journey."
The theory was plausible at the time. The group comprised both men and women of various ages, which ruled out the possibility that the remains belonged to soldiers.
But from a meteorological perspective, "killer hail" is an unlikely culprit due to the high altitude of Roopkund Lake, according to AccuWeather meteorologists.
At such high elevation, there wouldn't appear to be enough heat or moisture -- both related through thermodynamics -- to breed such "killer" hail, they noted.
A map showing the location of Roopkund Lake (AccuWeather)
AccuWeather
Experts haven't completely ruled out the possibility given that this is an event that took place more than 1,000 years ago, but generally, the conditions at a location as far above sea level as Roopkund Lake would "limit repeated freeze-thaw, wet-freeze cycles" necessary to produce large hail. The conditions there would favor small and/or soft hail over large, icy hail, AccuWeather meteorologists said.
Veena Mushrif-Tripathy, professor of archaeology at Deccan College in Pune, was part of the 2004 investigation. She said no weapons or signs of combat were found at the site, but they did find musical instruments, which is consistent with old folk stories of pilgrims traveling on the Nanda Devi Raj Jat Yatra. The victims were also healthy when they died, which rules out a mass epidemic.
Vallangi completed the trek that leads past Roopkund Lake in September 2009. She told AccuWeather that, at the time, she was excited about hiking so high in the Himalayas.
“You have to be reasonably fit to be able to walk for five to 10 days and the temperature obviously changes, fluctuates from 20 degrees (C) in the plains or lower hills to zero or sub-zero once you reach 4,000, 5,000 meters," she said, referring to a temperature range from about 68 degrees to below freezing. "This lake is at 4,800 meters.”
Vallangi was with a large group when she first set eyes on Skeleton Lake. She said that, before the group arrived, her guide had told them the most popular story behind the human remains: Pilgrims were caught in a huge hailstorm and perished.
This was what those in Vallangi's group believed they were seeing when they stopped at Skeleton Lake one frigid morning in 2010.
“It was very freezing and it was very cold, but once the sun is up it’s like a nice ski day," she said. "It's just that early in the morning when you're walking in the dark that's when it's really cold and miserable."
Continue below.
