My theory and it is pretty simple.

[eurocentric]

Hello world!  New here but have been following this off and on for about 3 years.  Recently here in America there was an exploration documentary on TV that was done in 2019 retracing the tracks and going to Dyatlov pass.  It re-ignited the curiosity in me to look deeper into this as I have a lot of free time on my hands now.  As a little background, I have done a lot of digital forensic work on retrieving data and building a timeline of deceased individuals in cases of suicide vs murder here in the states and have a pretty good track record.

Here is my theory with the data I have observed so far.  It is subject to change based on conversation and other pieces of data that might disconnect my theory from the truth that I have not read.
I think we can all agree the tent is the epic center of whatever triggered the events that followed.  If we look at the last photos taken of them preparing a place to pitch the tent, we can see that the weather conditions have deteriorated even more than in the previous pictures taken in the morning.  What else does the picture tell us? 

https://dyatlovpass.com/resources/340/gallery/Unknown-origin-Dyatlov-photos-11.jpg

There are only 4 people, which includes the person taking the picture working on the site.  Where are the other 5 people?   I think they were down in the ravine, making their snow cave as a backup plan if anything went wrong with their cold camp and if they were preparing a backup plan a fire would be part of it.  I believe the wood that was sawed off the tree was in fact done so but not in the middle of the night during a snow and violent windstorm but earlier in the afternoon.   That is why there are no saws found there.  They took them back to the camp after they completed their task.   Note also that the ravine is near a precious resource.  Water.  The tree line near the cache site they made does not appear to have water and appears to be harder trek than where they went into the ravine / tree line.  It is also closer to the planned route as well.

 I think we are concentrating too much on the fact that “someone” cut the tent.  I know what the forensics say in 1959 but there are no artifacts to support this conclusion I have found. From the data I read that the tent was two tents stitched together.   The tent was in disrepair, and they even wrote about having to keep it patched up.  I believe a very powerful katabatic windstorm (60-80MPH winds or more) came up on them evening, middle of the night, who knows but at some point, hurricane windstorm tore their dilapidated tent to the point they had to exit.    They had their backup plan, but they didn’t expect the storm and conditions they currently found themselves in.  It was far worse than they could imagine.

The hikers march single file down the tree line to fall back on their backup plan.  They walked like they knew where they were going in my opinion.   They get to the tree line and build a fire, and they go through the wood they had gathered rather quickly but it is simply not enough heat because of the extreme cold and wind.  I believe the rest of the group retreated to the snow cave and came out to check on their friends Doroshenko and Krivonischenko who were trying to keep the fire going and found them dead as they had been exposed to the elements more than the rest of the group.  They took their clothes.  These were the first people to die, I think.

While getting back into the snow cave it collapses, trapping 4 of the remaining 7 hikers.  Dyatlov, Komogorova and slobin witness this.  The campfire is a failure, the snow cave is a failure, and the only thing left to do is go back to the tent, get a shovel and possibly save their friends.  It would be the only reason in my opinion to return to the tent and not stay in the safety of the forest.  Hypothermia starts to sit in, and they don’t really realize how bad off they really are.

I think Slobodin skull fracture is the result of freezing out in the open with his neck possibly exposed.  He could also have fallen while walking back up to the tent from the ravine.  It is the only piece that looks like it could spin another theory, but I think those two scenarios are the cause for his injury.
It might just be that simple.

The other theories that have been mentioned I do not see the data to bring myself to those conclusions.  I do not see the data that supports.
1-   A missile test or some kind of radiation experiment. -  The whole place and everyone would send a Geiger counter off the charts.  The reason why radiation showed up on clothing and the explanation why the small reading is present makes perfect sense.  No craters or data showing anything explosive
2-   Humans forced them out of the tent.  - There is simply no evidence of any of this. With the current weather conditions that we know to have existed, no other humans were standing out in the middle of nowhere as they would be subject to freeze to death as well.
3-   Animals. – Again, there is no evidence to support this.  In the current weather conditions of the camp the animals were down in the forest.  The same place where the hikers were headed for the same reason.  Cover.
4-   Yeti, UFO, Ball lighting, Time Portal, poisonous gases. – The data just is not there to support any of these things no matter how outside of the box thinking is applied.  The data is simply just not there to make those conclusions.
5-   A fight or disagreement among the group. – I do not see the data to make that conclusion.  Fighting people don’t all walk down the mountain together and there would be physical evidence of clothes, being ripped or blood stained.





J Proxy
Peace on earth, goodwill towards men.

Interesting theory, I especially liked the idea of them marching off in a line to a predetermined destination, with a sense of purpose, and this would strengthen the contention they left without survival aids because they had an alternative site of heat and shelter waiting.

However, some of the details you have built your theory on are shaky...

There were no shovels on the hike, they used skis, poles and presumably gloved hands for any snowy excavations.

A snow den for 9 people would be a considerable task, and much more prone to collapse. Perhaps they made more than one, and during the search two large excavations appear to have been made, but only one 'den' is photographed, with clothing scraps and branches to line seats for 4 people.

The wood didn't appear to have been sawed off the (cedar) tree, but snapped.

Katabatic wind theory suggests winds crest a mountain ridge and blow downhill, so the uphill side of the tent, which was side-on to the crest, should have been more damaged than the downhill side. There was very little uphill tent damage.

Microscopic analysis revealed the tent had been cut in at least 3 places from the inside. The samples may have been lost but the photographs exist in the case files:

https://dyatlovpass.com/case-files-303-304?rbid=17743

[GlennM]

With the tent so nadly damaged, it would be of little use protecting the tourists. The logical choice is to leave and seek shelter and warmth. Boot rock could provide shelter, but no warmth. The forest is a better choice. I can only surmise that the conditions they experienced included darkness, wind driven snow, fog, and biting cold They underestimated their distance to the treeline. Once there, an emergency fire was lit and the effects of hypothermia started to impair judgements. As things got more urgent, more drastic behavior followed resulting in the two Yuri's accidental deaths and the separation of the party into two teams, one to regain the tent, the other to shelter in place. It was too little, too late. Nature is indifferent.

If anyone seeks factual truth, it is in mathematics. If you want scientific analysis, you are dealing with greater or lesser probabilities. Based on the historical records, there is a greater probability the DPI demise as being precipitated by natural causes. Since science deals with probabilities, there is ample room for conspiracies and alternate explanations which are possibilities and probable or improbable according to your evidence. Gamblers like to beat the odds, but the house nearly always wins. Nature holds all the cards here.

[MDGross]

Per Inge Oestmoen, Intervention by the KGB does answer the key questions.

Why did the hikers exit the tent so hurriedly and so under clothed? They were forced out at gunpoint.

How did the severe injuries to several hikers occur? They were beaten by rifle stocks. Interestingly, those beaten were Zolotaryov, WWII veteran and probably the one most knowledgeable about hand-to-hand combat; Zolotaryov's friend, Thibeaux-Brignolle; and Dubinina, who, upon reading the various diaries, seems to have a formidable temper.

Was there a cover-up during the investigation? If the KGB was involved, there certainly would be a cover-up.

Why has no substantial evidence ever come to light since? In 1959, the new head of the Communist Party,  Khrushchev, could not in any way be implicated in the incident. In 2024, the Russian government, would not want such an embarrassment on its hands.

Of course, intervention by the KGB raises countless questions, also. Then again, without indisputable evidence, every theory raises as many questions as it answers.

[GlennM]

"Of course, intervention by the KGB raises countless questions, also. Then again, without indisputable evidence, every theory raises as many questions as it answers."

My point exactly ! 

The KGB theory goes to the idea that absence of evidence does not mean evidence of absence. Yet, there is nothing definitive regarding the tent or personal injuries inflicted by the KGB that can not be explained naturally..  It all reduces to probability. For me, all the damage and fatalities have a greater probability from natural causation as opposed to physical assault for an unspecified reason by assault forces who had no route map to begin with.

It is axiomatic in criminal forensics that a criminal will bring something to a crime scene and leave with something from the crime scene. Nature does not have the same requirement. To the best of my understanding, the assault force left no prints nor physical debris. Did they take anything as a souvenir,  like the Flemish knife? After 60 years, someone would claim to have it for a collectors item if nothing else.

We have no mathematical certainty in this mystery,  only degrees of probability and Occam's razor. Sometimes, I think the Voynich ,manuscript will be decoded before this mystery gets solved.

[Osi]

Regardless of the outside temperature, a maximum of 3-5 degrees warmer area can be obtained inside the tent, while in the snow cave, the average temperature values ​​are around 0-1 degrees regardless of the outside air temperature. (DP members are of course aware of this ancient information) For this reason, it is possible to come across water sources flowing under the snow even in extreme cold. It was not possible to light a hot fire with wet branches in the snowstorm that night. However, 2 Yuris tried this but could not warm up. Because the person who was most interested in stove and fire construction was Y. Kryveshenko.
4 people were found in the snow cave at once. They did not need to dig the entire valley. Because signs such as drifting branches and fallen leaves indicating the snow cave made it easier to find the location of the cave correctly. This shows that there has been cave construction activity recently and that it was covered with 10-20 cm of snow in the past days. Saving time by hiding the murdered individuals under 4 meters of snow and thinking that the evidence of the murder will disappear in this way can only be the behavior of individuals far from civilized society and isolated from science. The KGB or the army knows that by hiding the bodies under the snow, the evidence will not be lost.

To summarize; Although it is a mystery why they came out of the tent (maybe it was the growl of a bear, the howl of a wolf pack, the shifting snow cover or the crushing wind), I believe that all the activities that took place in the forest had a purpose. They were carried out by DP members.

[Олег Таймень]

The absence of strangers at the scene of the tragedy has been proven by me long ago in this video. Therefore, there can be no talk of any murder by people. Turn on the auto-translator in the video settings and watch, read

[Ziljoe]

I think a number of forum members and you tubers have argued that there is no signs of outsiders/strangers anywhere for a long time. There were some Mansi trails discovered in a different direction .

It is only those that believe the injuries were the result of outsiders that argue that they were there .

It has always been one of the biggest arguments against any strangers in the area as they couldn't have been able to stage the scene because of the snow conditions. Every step taken would leave a trace , every branch broken or tree cut would leave evidence.

There are the 9 sets of footprints going down the slope. It could never be staged , no stager would know the end result of those foot prints on discovery by the searchers and I think this is a key point .... Stagers / KGB would have made the hiker's walk in single file down the slope . Why , to save work and time and cover their tracks , a single file trail would be the easiest but yet we have them walking side by side, the exact number of hikers , no extra footprints. It was only the hikers there until the searchers arrived. 

[Axelrod]

Dear Oleg!

I dont' believe in route from Otorten in South direction



As I suppose -  Slobtsov & Sharavin were landed between 1079 and Northern-2 (Severny-2)
Maybe it was Mountain  Hoy-Equa, not an Otorten.

[Олег Таймень]

Dear Oleg!

I dont' believe in route from Otorten in South direction



As I suppose -  Slobtsov & Sharavin were landed between 1079 and Northern-2 (Severny-2)
Maybe it was Mountain  Hoy-Equa, not an Otorten.

I already wrote above that I do not participate in discussions of fantasies. Please do not contact me with this.
Я уже чуть выше писал, что в обсуждениях фантазий не участвую. Ко мне с этим прошу не обращаться.