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A team of Spanish astronomers from the Centre for Astrobiology (CAB) in Madrid are leading the investigation into a perplexing mystery in the world of stargazing. In 1952, three bright stars photographed in the night sky over southern California vanished just an hour later, leaving generations of scientists baffled. Despite numerous attempts to explain the rare phenomenon, the scientific community remains unconvinced.

The puzzling event was captured by the legendary Palomar Observatory in San Diego County, California, using its 200-inch Hale telescope. The observation showed a compact group of three visible stars close to each other at 8.52 pm on July 19, 1952. However, less than an hour later, at 9.45 pm, the stars were absent from a photograph of the same region.

Scientists have proposed various explanations over the years, including the possibility that the stars simply dimmed simultaneously. However, this theory was quickly dismissed due to the infinitesimally small probability of all three stars simultaneously decreasing in brightness by a factor of 10,000.

Another hypothesis introduced the idea of a “gravitational lens,” suggesting that the initial observation was actually a single star whose profile was distorted by a passing black hole, creating three temporary images. While this explanation is considered plausible, the Spanish team led by astrophysicist Enrique Solano acknowledges that it would require a significant population of massive objects with lens-like structures to produce the observed phenomenon.

The team also explored the possibility that the captured objects were not stars at all but rather other types of celestial bodies. Their calculations showed that the brightness spots were relatively close to Earth, suggesting they could be objects in the Oort Cloud passing through our solar system.

However, the most likely explanation proposes that the captured objects were not from outer space but rather the result of radioactive dust contamination from frequent nuclear weapons tests taking place in nearby New Mexico deserts at the time.

Despite their efforts, Solano and his team could not definitively determine the truth. To solve the 70-year-old enigma, astronomers eagerly await the opportunity to capture a similar event with modern telescopes and use that as a key to decipher the mystery once and for all.

Sources:
– Centre for Astrobiology (CAB) in Madrid
– Palomar Observatory in San Diego County, California

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