Satellite

Can the European Incoherent Scatter Scientific Association, or EISCAT Scientific Association, use its technologies for mind control, as a video on social media claims? No, that's not true: EISCAT Scientific Association Director Axel Steuwer told Lead Stories that there is "absolutely no mind control possible" with the program's systems, which primarily measure physical elements of the upper atmosphere using the…

Did someone remove the satellite weather data from May 19, 2024, in the region of Jolfa, Iran, where a helicopter carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi crashed in foggy conditions in the mountains? No, that's not true: As of May 21, 2024, the satellite product from the Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere has the archived weather data for that…

Is the site known as Giant's Causeway on the coast of Northern Ireland actually a giant petrified armadillo, visible from the air? No, that's not true: The unusual geometric rock formations seen at Giant's Causeway are basalt columns, which, according to experts, take their shape from the way molten volcanic basalt lava shrinks as it cools. Some stone surfaces resemble…

Does a photo show mining operations extracting "lithium for electric cars," as a meme on Facebook claimed? No, that's not true: According to the Utah Division of Oil, Gas, and Mining, the image is of the Rio Tinto Kennecott mine in Magna, Utah, where no lithium mining occurs. The agency confirmed that the "image is false." The Rio Tinto mine…

Will the sun and moon not be in alignment on April 8, 2024, because the heavenly bodies are "in the wrong place" astrologically? No, that's not true: A video on TikTok making this claim is misleading on three points -- the alignment of the sun and moon during a total eclipse, the function of an app called SkyView and the…

Is NASA launching three rockets during the solar eclipse on April 8, 2024, for nefarious or "strange" purposes, as a post on TikTok implied? No, that's not true: While NASA is indeed launching the rockets before, during and after the solar eclipse, the purpose is to study disturbances in the ionosphere -- an electrified region of the atmosphere. The disturbances…

Did former President Donald Trump once brag about going backstage at the "Miss Teen USA show" when "everyone's getting dressed and ready," as a post on Facebook claimed? No, that's not true: There is no record of Trump having made such a statement. The post misrepresented Trump's genuine words. During a 2005 interview with Howard Stern, Trump discussed going backstage…

Do long-distance photos, showing things up to hundreds of miles away, provide evidence that the Earth is not curved? No, that's not true: Photos of faraway objects might appear flat because of Earth's large size, not because Earth itself is flat. While the Earth's surface does curve in these photos, it may not be noticeable due to the vast scale…

Did residents of Cape Coral, Florida, take to painting their roofs blue following numerous sightings of planes utilizing "Green Laser Technology," as claimed in a post circulating on social media? No, that's not true: The satellite imagery of Cape Coral, Florida, in the post dates back to a period after September 29, 2022, when Hurricane Ian impacted the area. Through…

Are solar flares not real, thus incapable of disrupting telecommunications networks, as a post on Instagram suggests? No, that's not true: Solar flares are well-documented bursts of electromagnetic energy emitted by the sun during geomagnetic storms, and a large body of evidence proves they exist and have far-ranging effects. Flares disrupt radar, gps and other radiowave-based systems, according to recognized…