Press
Recently, many of the capital’s residents turned their gaze upwards. A kind of huge dark halo had settled over Berlin. What was going on?
Berlin – One day later and a good 7,000 kilometers further west, you could have believed that the Hollywood blockbuster “Independence Day” had become a reality. On Wednesday (July 3), just before the US Independence Day (July 4), residents discovered mysterious black rings in the Berlin sky that were stubbornly staying there. What was it all about? A unusual streak of light in the sky in northern Italy was quickly clarified last autumn.
Alien life form accepts dance invitation – quite obvious, right?
The thought that the alien invasion long announced by pop culture could be behind it quickly came to mind. Instagram The operator of a capital city website speculates that the reputation of the popular Berlin techno club “Berghain” may have spread to other galaxies. “So either aliens want to go to Berghain now or God is smoking shisha,” writes the user who uploaded a video of the dark rings in the air. And promptly sparked an amusing debate on the Internet.
Serious curiosity meets funny speculation – “Must be these stoner circles”
The capital’s serious curiosity invited several users to a less serious conversation. “These must be the stoner circles that politicians are always talking about,” joked one person. A slight swipe at overly prudish debates about cannabis legalization in Germany?
Video games would have taught another user that rewards await if you jump through such rings that magically float in the air. This might have been an option for Super Mario, but in reality the black rings were several hundred meters in the air, as videos and pictures on the Internet show.
One user was reminded less of “Independence Day” than of the action film “Apollo 13”. A strange beam of light, like from the Hollywood film with Will Smith, gave A few weeks ago, however, the people of Munich had reason to puzzle.
No aliens and no God’s lie – Black rings have a simple background
An Instagram user provided the solution to the mystery of the black rings over Berlin: “Caused by industrial processes or explosions in which soot and exhaust gases escape into the air.” Has there been an incident with a detonation in the capital? Not necessarily. Because, as the user writes, fireworks or pyrotechnics, such as those used in football stadiums or at open-air concerts, can also create such effects. The same applies to large machine exhausts.
The attempt to explain this is supported by the Federal Criminal Police Office, which had solved the black air rings in the same way in a similar case in 2016. When fireworks or similar items are set off on the ground, soot particles are created which, due to their lower weight, rise into the air and form rings, with the cooler ambient air sliding along the edges. However, strong winds usually prevent rings from forming. “It’s basically like making vape rings. Only much bigger and stronger,” explains one person, using a metaphor that is certainly more commonplace in Berlin.
“Why doesn’t this ring dissolve?” asks one user, quite rightly. “It does, but slowly. It’s because of the particles that the event machine intentionally shoots upwards to create the effect,” is the expert’s answer. The fact that it was rather calm in Berlin on Wednesday may also have contributed to this.
Black rings are keeping Berliners busy – who was responsible?
There were also stories on Instagram that showed such a bang. The exact origin of the rings is unclear. As the Berlin newspaper writes that a pyrotechnics company is located in the area where the rings were sighted. However, a request from the newspaper remained unanswered.
Pyrotechnics, however, not only create mysterious black air rings, but also pose a considerable danger, as the Federal Police explain. It goes without saying that they are not allowed to be set off on public transport or in train stations. And yet, the police were recently deployed at Munich Central Station, after football fans lit the long fireworks. (rku)
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