# Candles detectable by satelites? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 18, 2001, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/candles-detectable-by-satelites/82308 "2001-09-18T02:02:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Qwertyasdfg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/ecc23a/32.png) [@Qwertyasdfg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qwertyasdfg)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2001, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/candles-detectable-by-satelites/82308/1 "2001-09-18T02:02:30Z")
Some one just sent me this message (I’m posting it exavtly as I recieved it) : ASTERN TIME…They just said on the radio that the U.S. has asked that everyone step out on their lawns tonight at 10:30 and light a candle. They will be taking a satellite picture of the U.S. and posting it on the news tomorrow morning.Please pass this on to as many people as possible…pass it on Is it possible to detect candle lights that are at least a few feet seperated from eachother from a satelite. ---
**Author:** ![d12](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/71c47a/32.png) [@d12](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/d12)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2001, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/candles-detectable-by-satelites/82308/2 "2001-09-18T03:50:15Z")
Not too sure. Of course they’d be able to see the candles (I heard that you can read writing on a persons hand from the new spy types) but the problem is that they’ll need to zoom in causing the area to be focused on a small portion of the US. Say you want to see the candles, you’d probably need to look at a 1-1 meter image (hey, I’m just guessing). Now if you want to capture the US on film, just make sure I don’t pay for it with my taxes. However! During a science lesson last year, our prof. mamanged to find a picture of the light sources in North America. The picture was taken at night so you’d acctually see the light output from space. Perhaps they hope to see if there would be a visible difference from any other day and the day that they would take the candles out. ---
**Author:** ![BingoBurringo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/43a26b/32.png) [@BingoBurringo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BingoBurringo)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2001, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/candles-detectable-by-satelites/82308/3 "2001-09-18T03:54:45Z")
This sounds suspiciously like the doof last year who wanted everyone in the country to aim their laser pointers at the moon on a certain night and time. ---
**Author:** ![Dijon\_Warlock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a9a28c/32.png) [@Dijon\_Warlock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dijon_Warlock)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2001, 6:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/candles-detectable-by-satelites/82308/4 "2001-09-18T06:21:20Z")
Don’t know if this is the picture you saw, **d12** , but you can see the whole world in this one. It’s spectacular: [http://www.freerepublic.com/forum/a3ad6104f1b03.htm](http://www.freerepublic.com/forum/a3ad6104f1b03.htm) ---
**Author:** ![therealblaze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a9adbd/32.png) [@therealblaze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/therealblaze)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2001, 8:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/candles-detectable-by-satelites/82308/5 "2001-09-18T08:49:23Z")
The original picture in [JPEG format](http://photojournal-a.jpl.nasa.gov/outdir/PIA02991.27070.jpeg). It is made of several satellite pictures that have been combined to make one picture. More information can be found [here](http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/PIAGenCatalogPage.pl?PIA02991). ---
**Author:** ![SPOOFE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@SPOOFE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SPOOFE)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2001, 9:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/candles-detectable-by-satelites/82308/6 "2001-09-18T09:49:22Z")
Yes, a satellite is capable of taking images of candles, ones that are only a few inches apart from each other. My friend knows a guy with access to satellite photography. He once showed me a picture of himself, standing outside his house and smoking a cigarette, taken from space. The clarity in the image was amazing. ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2001, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/candles-detectable-by-satelites/82308/7 "2001-09-28T23:02:22Z")
Snopes has somewhat belatedly covered this one. [http://www.snopes2.com/inboxer/hoaxes/candle.htm](http://www.snopes2.com/inboxer/hoaxes/candle.htm) > [@](#): > > Unless every city in the country is going to extinguish all of its artificial lighting at just the right time, a satellite photo simply isn’t going to pick up candlelight (and even then it’s unlikely we could muster enough candles to produce light visible to an orbiting satellite).