"Lightening, falling from a clear blue sky, and a column of roaring smoke
and fire on which a million deaths rides".
Јust a sentence or quote from Doctor JPF book Giza Death Star.
But a rather deep thought and colorful description of these types of weapons.
However, this was so familiar to me from somewhere, from something previously seen and read somewhere. 
And yes!; The Tunguska explosion, or rather the Tunguska event!

And of all places, Tungusia ,Siberia,Russia,1908!
Weapons based on different(other) principles?
An event that precedes the two world wars!
Tunguska: When the Sky Fell to Earth
And the joke(the lie that is):

Tunguska meteor: “I’m going to do a great deal of death to mankind”
Earth’s atmosphere: "Are you sure about that?