Barsa-Kelmes

Barsa-Kelmes (Russian: Барсакельмес, Kazakh: Барсакелмес, Barsakelmes meaning "the place of no return") was a former island, the largest in the Aral Sea.

Because of the native salt deposits, visitors are recommended to close their eyes during dust storms and strong winds.

During the second half of the 20th century, there was a persistent urban legend about paranormal phenomena occurring on the island.

The legend reached its peak in the early 1990s, when popular science magazine Tekhnika Molodyozhi published a large article about these phenomena, listing local medical student Sergey Lukyanenko as their chief source.

[5] As the story went, when Neverov asked his colleagues throughout the Soviet Union whether they recalled any stories about paranormal phenomena in their regions, Lukyanenko, then an active member of the Almaty KLF, remembered some rumors about mysterious doings on Barsa-Kelmes and decided to play a practical joke on the Muscovite.