A closer look
Kirlian photography became a massive mystical sensation in the 1970s when believers claimed the glowing, colorful halos captured around hands and leaves were visual proof of the human soul or the ethereal life force known as an aura. The technique simply involved placing an object on a photographic plate and passing a high-voltage electrical current through it, creating a pretty, glowing corona discharge. Scientists quickly proved that the magical aura changes had absolutely nothing to do with psychic energy or spiritual health, but were entirely dependent on how sweaty the person's hands were at that exact moment. It takes a special kind of desperate mysticism to look at a literal picture of someone's clammy hand moisture conducting electricity and conclude that you have scientifically captured the eternal essence of human divinity
