Tag Archives: chemtrails

An image being widely shared on Facebook claims to show how to identify a “chemtrail” as compared to a “contrail” left in the sky by an aeroplane.

The post, one example of which has been shared more than 6,300 times, includes side-by-side images of two planes in the sky with differing lengths of white trails behind them.

Text within the photo identifies the longer trail as a “chemtrail”, adding the “trail extends for miles” and “lasts for hours”. While a “contrail” in the image is described as where the “trail extends for feet lasts for seconds”.

But both of the images show contrails, or condensation trails, left by aircraft.

We’ve written a number of times about conspiracy theories around ‘chemtrails’, which claim that white lines in…

An image of vapour trails left in the sky by aeroplanes has been shared on Facebook alongside a caption claiming these are “chemtrails” that are blocking the sun. 

This isn’t true. These white lines are contrails, trails of vapour left behind by planes. 

The image shows the roofs of what appear to be terraced houses or businesses, alongside a blue sky. A number of white trails are visible in the sky, some crossing each other, with some appearing to be in front of the sun. 

It was posted with the caption: “Bill gates + Chemtrails = block the sun”. 

We’ve written many times about “chemtrails”, a false but enduring conspiracy theory that typically claims these white lines are evidence of a plot to control the weather or spread poison by spraying…

A video of white plumes coming from the tip of a plane’s wings has been shared on Facebook with the caption “Chemtrails come from engines right?”

The post has over 700 shares on Facebook and 8,000 likes on Instagram.

It’s not completely clear exactly what the caption means. It may be referring to the fact that so-called ‘chemtrails’ (the conspiracy theory that the white lines emitted from planes are actually chemicals being purposefully sprayed to harm people) are actually usually contrails. 

Contrails appear when water vapour, either already in the air around the engine or emitted from it, condenses around soot particles emitted from the combustion process due to cold temperatures at high altitude. This forms long thin lines of cloud. They can look…

A post on Facebook shows two pictures of the sky: one of clouds with the caption “these are clouds”, and the other of several trails from planes, with the caption “these are chemtrails”. 

While it’s true that one of the images does show clouds, the other does not show “chemtrails”. It shows contrails, which consist of water vapour that freezes in the cold temperatures at high altitude forming long thin lines of cloud. 

Depending on the humidity and temperature of the air, the tiny ice crystals can either change directly from a solid to a gas (becoming invisible after a few minutes) or remain in the air as water or ice, which means they stay visible for several hours. 

Not all planes will produce contrails. Slight differences in flight altitude and the…