On May 30, 1626 (the sixth year of the Tianqi era of the Ming Dynasty), an unprecedented massive explosion occurred near the Wanggongchang gunpowder depot in the southwestern corner of Beijing. But this was no ordinary gunpowder depot explosion—the bizarre phenomena at the scene have left modern UFO researchers utterly baffled.

📍 Location	📅 Date	🔍 Category
Beijing, Ming Dynasty China	1626-05-30	Mysterious Explosion / UFO Theory

According to the Ming Dynasty official record “Tianbian Dichao,” before the explosion, residents reported seeing a “fireball” flying in from the southeast, accompanied by a sound “like a thunderclap.” The explosion was devastating, covering an area of approximately 2.25 square kilometers and killing over 20,000 people. At the time, the area around Shifuma Street in the capital was reduced to rubble.

But the most bizarre detail is this—many victims had all their clothes stripped off, leaving them completely naked. Historical records state: “The injured men and women were all naked, not a thread left, for reasons unknown.” After the explosion, large quantities of clothing and fabric were scattered across the capital, as if neatly “peeled off” by some mysterious force.

Modern scientists speculate this effect might be a special physical phenomenon of the explosion’s shockwave, but UFO researchers find this detail strikingly similar to descriptions in modern UFO abduction cases where victims’ clothing is “removed.”

What most intrigues UFO researchers is this: some people reported seeing “a huge fireball” flying over Beijing before the explosion. They described this fireball as emitting alternating “red” and “white” light, trailing “smoke and fire.” This description is remarkably similar to modern UFO sightings.

American UFO researcher Jacques Vallee, in collaboration with Chinese scholars, pointed out that the Tianqi Explosion shares many similarities with the 1908 Tunguska Event—both involved massive energy releases without obvious impact craters; both had the strange phenomenon of victims’ clothing being removed (similar reports exist from the Tunguska region).

UFO researchers in Taiwan and Hong Kong have also long focused on this case. Taiwanese writer Chang Cao has even incorporated the Tianqi Explosion into his science fiction novel series, exploring the possibility of ancient China’s contact with extraterrestrials.

📚 Sources

• 《天變邸抄》(1626), Ming Dynasty official record
• Vallee, J. “The Tianqi Explosion: China’s Tunguska?” (1990), Journal of Scientific Exploration
• 張草, “北京滅亡” (1999), Crown Publishing