Follow the beginning of a curious story
Mystery Archive
40 records · 4 topicsUnfamiliar images and curious stories. Begin with what happened, then explore the record and its interpretations.
Read randomly from all 40A record you happened upon
One story opening from all 40 records
Rumours & reporting
NASA’s Expensive Pen, Soviet Pencils? Separate Development from Purchases
Spacecraft crews need tools for recording procedures and experiments. Fisher’s Space Pen uses pressure to move ink towards the tip. A familiar story says NASA spent heavily developing it while the Soviets simply used pencils.
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Showing 10 of 40 records
- Photographs & images
The Cottingley Fairies: paper figures in a photograph
- Exhibits & mechanisms
Pepper’s Ghost: Where Did the Figure on Stage Come From?
- Observation & interpretation
How Did Lines on Mars Become Canals?
- Rumors & reporting
The 1938 War of the Worlds broadcast: how were reactions reported?
- Photographs & images
Mary Lincoln’s spirit photograph: together in the image, together in the room?
- Exhibits & mechanisms
The Chess Automaton: Who Moved the Pieces?
- Observation & interpretation
Death Valley’s Moving Rocks: What Happened Behind the Tracks?
- Rumors & reporting
The 1835 Moon Hoax: Where Did the Report Come From?
- Photographs & images
Lincoln’s composite portrait: does the face identify every part?
- Exhibits & mechanisms
The Cardiff Giant: Does Being Dug Up Make Something Ancient?
Explore what an image shows, what a source records, and how people explained it.