Why Russia’s culture of dashboard cams was uniquely suited to capturing the meteor

Dramatic footage of the 10-50 ton meteor that coursed across the Siberian sky, shattering windows, cratering at least one building and injuring hundreds is all over the web this morning, and most of it was captured from the dashboard cameras that are common in Russian vehicles. But why are drivers in Russia so obsessed with recording themselves as they drive?

Basically, it’s because Russia is a lawless, violent country full of corrupt traffic cops, road rage and drivers who will fight you if you rear end them, reports Marina Galperina at Animal. Continuous recording of your time on the road is most drivers’ primary evidence should they need to make an insurance claim after an accident.