A mysterious crater has been spotted in Siberia, confounding scientists.

The hole, estimated to measure about 80m across, was first spotted from the air by engineer Konstantin Nikolaev as he flew over the Russian peninsula called Yamal, which translates roughly as the “End of the World”.

Sinkholes and meteor strikes have been making the new regularly in recent months around the world, and can be formed through the natural process of erosion resulting from the collapse of a cave roof or lowering of the water table, but with only distant footage available of this crater it is impossible to be sure of the cause.

However, Sub-Arctic Scientific Research Centre scientists Anna Kurchatova is quoted in the Siberian Times as blaming the crater on global warming. She postulates that as the ice melts, the gas that was trapped within it mixed with salt to produce an explosion.

Yamal authorities have organised an expedition to the crater where scientists plan to take samples of soil, air, and water from the scene to examine in an effort to determine the cause.