Innovative Photography Using Cosmic Rays
A photography student at Arts University Bournemouth has developed a novel artistic technique by utilizing cosmic rays high above the Earth to create unique photographic images.
Tom Liggett, who is pursuing a BA (Hons) Photography degree, sends undeveloped photographic film sealed within a plastic bag to the edge of space via a helium balloon.
At altitudes far above the planet's atmosphere, cosmic radiation interacts with the film, producing distinctive patterns through a process believed to be unprecedented worldwide.
The helium balloon ascends to approximately 121,000 feet—about three times the cruising altitude of commercial aircraft—before bursting and releasing the film package, which then returns to Earth for development by Liggett.
"It came at the beginning from the question of what would happen if I sent a negative of film in to space," says Liggett.
"It was a really wild question. The chances of this not working is very high, because as far as I know no one's ever achieved it before."
Liggett’s project explores the effects of radiation on undeveloped film, a concern familiar to photographers due to potential damage caused by X-ray scanners at airports.
His curiosity led him to experiment with various radiation sources, including dental and hospital X-rays, before shifting focus to cosmic radiation in space.
To facilitate the project, Liggett collaborated with a US-based company specializing in sending objects to near-space altitudes using helium balloons, which agreed to assist with the launches.
"A lot of people think when I say these things that there's a camera involved taking the image," Liggett explains.
"There is nothing. It's literally just a plastic bag and a sheet of film inside it and it's duct-taped down, that's it."
Liggett traveled to New York State to participate in the most recent balloon launch carrying his photographic film.
The balloon ascends to around 121,000 feet before bursting, releasing the film package which descends back to Earth.
A tracking device attached to the package enables the retrieval of the film for development.
Liggett admits he initially had low expectations regarding the outcome of the experiment.
"Going back to the first launch, when it came down the film was then sent back and I opened the dark bag and developed it at Arts University Bournemouth," he recalls.
"There was something on the negative, this kind of like pattern. I knew at that point that I'd achieved something literally unimaginable."
After extensive research into the balloon launches and the resulting images, Liggett and his collaborators have developed an understanding of how the patterns on the film are formed.
"We've kind of deduced it to be UVC radiation, the radiation that exists above the ozone layer because obviously there's no filter up there," he explains.
"Then cosmic radiation and muons from black holes, like billions of light-years away."
Liggett believes the images produced provide a more accurate representation of space than traditional photographs.
"I actually think it's a more accurate representation of space than a photograph is," he says.
"It's capturing the actual molecular formula of space."
Liggett was also able to bring the remains of one of the balloons used in his project back to the darkroom at Arts University Bournemouth for further study.
