Student Exposes Film to Cosmic Radiation by Sending Negative to Space

Tom Liggett, a third-year photography student at Arts University Bournemouth (AUB) in the UK, sent a 5×4 color negative into space on April 19, capturing cosmic radiation directly onto the film without a camera or lens. The negative was duct-taped inside a plastic bag and attached to a weather balloon launched from New York state, reaching altitudes over 121,000 feet—three times higher than commercial aircraft. The balloon burst at just over 100,000 feet, and the payload descended, landing 50 miles away on private property in Connecticut. The film was exposed to UV-C rays, muons, and high-energy particles, producing a colorful kaleidoscope image with ghostly patterns. A tree pierced the bag during descent, causing a yellow bloom at the top. Liggett partnered with Filmed in Space for the project. He developed the negative in the AUB lab and described the result as "a more accurate representation of space than a photograph is." The image includes cosmic radiation and muons from black holes billions of light-years away. Liggett's expectations were low, hoping for just a speck, but he was shocked and happy with the abstract celestial results.