Skip to content
ArchiveJuly 15, 2026Sleuth
Case File · Detective · No. 021

Daily Casefile · Detective

Interference at Peakfall Ridge

6 min

Peakfall Ridge Observatory closes to the public at 9 PM, but tonight the prize of the annual Harmon Astrophotography Competition — a data file on the main telescope's dedicated server, capturing a rare noctilucent cloud formation — was overwritten with noise just after 11 PM. Observatory director Dr. Lena Ashworth discovered the sabotage at 11:42 PM and called for an inquiry. Four people had legitimate after-hours access: a volunteer technician, a visiting researcher, the competition's external judge, and a rival entrant.

Subject

Priya Osei

Amateur astrophotographer and current front-runner in the Harmon Competition; her noctilucent-cloud image, captured after eighteen months of waiting, was the overwritten file.

The suspects

  • Felix DrummondVolunteer Telescope Technician
  • Dr. Mira VossVisiting Researcher, Atmospheric Physics
  • Callum BreezeExternal Competition Judge
  • Nadia FernCompetition Entrant, Amateur Astronomer

Play today’s Detective.

This case first aired on July 15, 2026. A fresh detective runs every morning — same rules, five minutes, one solution.