This video examines Russia’s mysterious dome of light, a strange glowing phenomenon seen in the skies over northern Russia that left witnesses puzzled and fuelled speculation around the world. Footage showed a huge, luminous dome spreading across the night sky, with a bright light at its centre, and people who saw it wondered whether they were witnessing a natural event, a secret weapon or something stranger still. The film looks at the images, the reactions they provoked online, and the search for a credible explanation.
The programme explores the most widely discussed explanation, that the dome was caused by a Russian missile test, with exhaust gases from a rocket illuminated high in the atmosphere creating the unusual glow. It considers Russia’s long history of testing missiles and other weapons in its remote northern regions, the secrecy that surrounds those programmes, and the way that secrecy invites rumour and conspiracy theories when something unusual appears in the sky.
For readers interested in socialism’s history and present, the story matters because it connects the military legacy of the Soviet Union with the Russia of today. The Soviet Union built one of the world’s largest nuclear arsenals, and Russia has continued to develop and test new weapons, making its military programmes a continuing source of international tension. The video below presents the full report.