Recently, people across India celebrated Diwali 2025. In this context, a photo is going viral on social media platforms, claiming to show a satellite image of India taken on the night of Diwali (here, here, here, and here). Through this article, let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: The photo shows a satellite image of India taken on the night of Diwali 2025.
Fact: The viral photo does not depict a satellite image of India taken on the night of Diwali 2025 or any previous Diwali. The image was actually created in 2003 by NOAA scientist Chris Elvidge, combining years of satellite data to illustrate population growth in India over time using city lights. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
To learn more about the viral photo, we conducted a Google reverse image search and found that the same photo has been circulating on the Internet every Diwali season since at least 2011 (here, here), with the claim that it shows a satellite image of India on Diwali night taken by NASA. However, the viral photo does not depict a satellite image of India taken on the night of Diwali.
In 2012, NASA clarified that the image is based on data from the Operational Linescan System flown on U.S. Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) satellites. It is actually a colour-composite created in 2003 by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) scientist Chris Elvidge to illustrate population growth in India over time using city lights (here, here). In the photo, white areas show city lights that were visible prior to 1992, while blue, green, and red shades indicate city lights that became visible in 1992, 1998, and 2003, respectively.
In November 2012, NASA released an image of Diwali night over South Asia. According to NASA, the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) on the Suomi NPP satellite captured this night-time view. NASA stated that the image had been brightened to make city lights easier to distinguish, as any additional light produced during Diwali is so subtle that it is likely imperceptible when observed from space.
In November 2020, the Government of India’s Press Information Bureau (PIB) fact-check wing also posted on X (formerly Twitter) about this viral photo, stating that it is unrelated to Diwali or NASA and that Diwali is not incomplete without this viral NASA image. The post read: “We know Diwali is incomplete without lights, diyas, and sweets. And of course, this viral NASA image!”
To sum it up, this viral photo does not show a satellite image of India taken on the night of Diwali 2025.
