The mystery of the 'Black Night' : An alien ship orbiting the Earth?

Time of India

01-07-2025

For decades, the legend of the so-called Black Knight satellite has interested conspiracy theorists and also made the general public inquisitive about the alleged alien spacecraft in a near-polar orbit for over 13,000 years.
The tale has previously surfaced in online forums and tabloids, and drawn attention by misinterpreted photos and mysterious radio echoes. Yet, beneath the myth lies a straightforward, well-documented explanation.
While human curiosity advances on unsolved mysteries, science actually wants proven evidence to make anything a reality. So, how did these stories come to the surface?
The Black Knight satellite theory involves unrelated stories, dating back over a century.
It begins with Nikola Tesla, a famous Serbian-American engineer, futurist, and inventor who is well known for his contributions to the design of the modern alternating current electricity supply system. In 1899, he picked up weird radio signals in Colorado Springs. Some thought he'd intercepted alien transmissions, but scientists now believe these were natural radio waves or equipment interference.
In 1927, amateur radio operator Jørgen Hals recorded long-delayed echoes, another curious but terrestrial phenomenon.
Then, in 1954, UFO promoter Donald Keyhoe claimed the US Air Force detected two satellites orbiting Earth, and this happened decades before Sputnik. Later, a 1960 Time magazine article described a 'dark object' picked up by the Navy. But it was soon identified as debris from the US Discoverer spy satellite
The infamous 1998 photo
The modern legend ignited in 1998, when astronauts aboard STS-88, the first shuttle mission to assemble the ISS, snapped images of a strange dark object floating against Earth's blue backdrop, according to Space.com.
It was then that it was labeled the Black Knight. But those familiar with the mission knew better, astronaut Jerry Ross later explained, 'Jerry, one of the thermal covers got away from you,' as a thermal insulation blanket became untethered during a spacewalk, says livescience.com.
That same object was cataloged by NASA as object 025570 and re-entered Earth's atmosphere just days later. According to NASA documentation, the STS-88 crew attached four thermal covers to protect module components; one simply floated away during the EVA.
Why does the myth still persist?
Even after the debunking, the Black Knight myth still lives on. It taps into our fascination with alien intelligence, secret conspiracies, and the unknown. With recent interest in UAPs and declassified government reports, public curiosity remains high.
Alice Gorman, a space archaeologist, said in an episode of Ologies with Alie Ward, that 'There are things that have a catalogue number, but we don't actually know what they are... it's likely that they're seeing an optical illusion.' she says that it's illogical that a supposed 13,000-year-old satellite would remain powered and in orbit without maintenance—something our current technology can't achieve.