Bellingcat Challenge #93 "Point of Origin" Writeup

This article was automatically translated from Japanese by AI.

Challenge

Bellingcat Challenge #93 “Point of Origin”

What is the name of the pictured street (omit вулиця, lane, etc)? From which direction was the munition that caused this crater fired?

Solution

A reverse image search of the distinctive blue-roofed building in the background led to a Vatican News article, which placed it in Orikhiv, Ukraine. Checking aerial imagery on Google Maps, I identified the building as Svyato-Pokrovsʹkyy Khram.

From the relative positions of the narrow tower on the left and the rounded tower on the right, I judged that the photo was taken facing north from near 47.5750, 35.7853. The street was вулиця Покровська (Pokrovska St).

To infer the firing direction, I focused on the traces scattered around the crater rather than the crater itself. Since these were concentrated on the southern side, I judged that the munition had been fired from the north, which was at the back of the photo.

Flag

Покровська, North