A viral photograph on Reddit claimed to show one of the first photographs taken at Chernobyl after the explosion of the nuclear reactor in Ukraine on April 26, 1986. The above photograph was indeed among the first taken just after the disaster occurred. This was taken from the first helicopter to fly over the disaster zone to evaluate radiation levels. The view is foggy due to radiation, which also explains why the shot was not taken too close to the window. In short, while Kostin took one of the first photographs of the Chernobyl disaster, other professionals also shot photographs on the day of the incident.

Source: The Guardian December 16, 2023 14:06 UTC