Moscow suicide bomber kills 9
 |  Firefighters extinguish a burning car after an explosion in front of the Rizhskaya subway station. |
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 A female suicide bomber kills at least nine outside a Moscow subway station
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MOSCOW, Russia (CNN) -- A female suicide bomber killed nine people and herself and wounded 51 others when she detonated a bomb outside a subway station in northeastern Moscow Tuesday, officials said.
The bombing marked the second major terrorist attack on Russia in a week, following the near simultaneous attacks of two Russian airliners by what authorities believe were two Chechen women suicide bombers.
Witnesses told police the woman in Tuesday's attack was walking toward the entrance to the Rizhskaya station around 8:10 p.m. (12:10 p.m. ET), but turned around when she saw police checking commuters' bags and blew herself up.
Authorities later found her head on the subway station's roof.
The blast was so powerful a nearby car erupted in flames.
"The amount of explosives was huge, and the bomb was stuffed with shrapnel and other small metal objects," said Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov.
All but two of the wounded were hospitalized, officials said.
Most commuters were returning home from work at the time of the explosion.
Authorities did not immediately say if the female bomber was Chechen.
Known in Russia as "black widows," Chechen women have become one of the preferred methods of sowing terror.
Their debut came nearly two years ago when they threatened to blow up a Moscow theater they seized in the middle of a musical.
Chechen women have also been blamed for blasts at a rock concert and outside a hotel.
In last week's attacks on the two airliners, officials have said they suspect two Chechen women, who purchased their tickets at the last minute, were involved in the incidents. Eighty-nine people died in the crashes. (Full story)
Authorities have said traces of the explosive hexogen were found in the wreckage of both planes.
Hexogen, when mixed with nitroglycerin, forms a plastic explosive similar to C4 and has been used by Chechen rebels in attacks on Russian soil in the past.
Chechen rebels -- who refused to take part in Chechen elections held Sunday and vowed to take their fight to Russian soil -- have denied responsibility.
But many Russian politicians are already linking them to the latest attack, calling it revenge for the elections in which a Kremlin-backed candidate won the presidency.
Russian troops have battled separatist guerrillas in Chechnya since 1994.
In the United States, White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan said the nation "condemns in the strongest terms the recent terrorist attacks in Russia."
"The American people grieve for the victims of these horrible attacks and extend condolences to their families. No cause ever justifies terrorism," he said.
-- CNN Correspondent Ryan Chilcote contributed to this story
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Associated Press contributed to this report.
