Those weird lights in space photos from the 50s happen at the exact same time we were testing nuclear bombs back on Earth.
April 2, 2026
Original Paper
Independent Replication of Nuclear Test-Transient Correlations and Earth Shadow Deficit in POSS-I Photographic Plates
arXiv · 2604.00056
The Takeaway
This study independently replicated a bizarre correlation between unexplained flashes in the sky and early atmospheric nuclear tests—all occurring before the launch of the first human satellite, Sputnik. The findings suggest a previously unknown physical link between nuclear radiation and 'transient' objects appearing in deep space.
From the abstract
Transient sources on astronomical photographic plates are objects that appear on a single exposure but have no counterpart in modern sky surveys or on temporally adjacent plates. I present an independent replication of two findings reported by Bruehl and Villarroel (2025) and Villarroel et al. (2025): (1) a temporal correlation between transient detections on Palomar Observatory Sky Survey (POSS-I) photographic plates and atmospheric nuclear weapons tests, and (2) a deficit of transient sources