A closer look
Dictators love to fabricate their economic growth numbers, but they fundamentally can't hide from space. Because authoritarian regimes routinely cook their books to look successful, cynical economists stop looking at official spreadsheets and start looking at nighttime satellite imagery. True economic activity—factories running late, new roads, electrified homes—generates light. By measuring the literal luminosity of a country from orbit, researchers can mathematically calculate the real GDP, instantly exposing when an autocrat's 'record economic boom' is a complete, dark lie.
