⚠️This fact has been debunked
The Black Knight Satellite is a thoroughly debunked conspiracy theory. The famous photos show a thermal blanket lost during the 1998 STS-88 ISS construction mission, confirmed by NASA astronaut Jerry Ross who was on that mission. The myth conflates unrelated incidents: 1960s detection of U.S. Air Force Discoverer 8 debris misidentified as Soviet satellite, Nikola Tesla's 1899 radio experiments, and various other space debris. No credible evidence supports an ancient or alien satellite orbiting Earth.
There's a mysterious satellite of unknown origin that's orbiting Earth. Dubbed the Black Knight Satellite, astronomers have been reporting strange radio signals allegedly coming from the satellite since the 1930s - before NASA or the Soviet Union put satellites into space.
The Black Knight Satellite Is Just a Lost Space Blanket
If you've spent any time in conspiracy theory corners of the internet, you've probably heard about the Black Knight Satellite—a supposed alien spacecraft that's been orbiting Earth for 13,000 years, transmitting mysterious radio signals since before humans even invented satellites.
Sounds cool, right? There's just one problem: it's completely made up. The famous "Black Knight" photos show something far more mundane than ancient alien technology.
It's Actually a Thermal Blanket
Those iconic images that conspiracy theorists love to share? They were taken during the STS-88 Space Shuttle mission in December 1998, when astronauts were working on constructing the International Space Station. Jerry Ross, one of the astronauts on that mission, has been crystal clear about what the object is: a thermal insulation blanket that broke loose during a spacewalk.
NASA even catalogued it as space debris (item number STS088-724-66) and tracked it until it eventually burned up in Earth's atmosphere. As NASA bluntly put it when asked about alien satellites: there is "no evidence whatsoever"—it was "a thermal blanket, and nothing more."
How a Lost Blanket Became an Ancient Alien Spacecraft
The Black Knight myth is what happens when you throw several unrelated stories into a blender and hit "conspiracy." Here's what actually got mixed together:
- 1899: Nikola Tesla detected unusual radio signals (probably just natural cosmic interference)
- 1960: The U.S. Navy spotted a dark object in orbit—which turned out to be debris from their own Air Force Discoverer 8 satellite
- 1973: Science fiction writer Duncan Lunan claimed he decoded messages from a probe near the Moon (he later admitted his "decoding" method was flawed)
- 1998: That thermal blanket floated away during ISS construction and got photographed
None of these incidents have anything to do with each other. But on the internet, they got chopped up, stirred together, and served as one rambling myth about a 13,000-year-old alien surveillance satellite.
The Debunkers Aren't Impressed
James Oberg, a former NASA engineer who actually worked on the STS-88 mission's trajectory design, has repeatedly explained that the object is just lost equipment. He's talked to the astronauts who took the photos, including Russian cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev. They all confirm: thermal blanket, not alien probe.
The Black Knight theory persists because the photos do look kind of mysterious if you don't know the context. A dark, oddly-shaped object floating in space makes for a compelling image. But knowing it's essentially a space-age emergency blanket takes all the fun out of it.
Still, the myth refuses to die. Articles debunking it pop up regularly because new generations of conspiracy theorists keep rediscovering those 1998 photos and deciding they've found proof of extraterrestrial life.
The Real Mystery: Why We Want to Believe
Here's what's actually interesting about the Black Knight saga: why does this myth have such staying power? Even with NASA's clear explanations, astronaut testimony, and tracking data showing the debris burned up years ago, people still share those photos as "evidence" of alien technology.
Maybe it's because the idea of an ancient satellite watching over humanity is more exciting than "astronauts lost some equipment." Or maybe we just really want to believe we're not alone in the universe—even if it means ignoring a lot of evidence to the contrary.
Either way, the next time someone sends you a grainy photo of the "Black Knight Satellite," you can confidently tell them: that's not an alien probe. It's a blanket.