SCP-2640
The Gurdon Lights
A satellite photo of the SCP-2640 Exclusion Zone, highlighted
Special Containment Procedures
The rail line that intersects SCP-2640 is to be decommissioned for all commercial or industrial traffic. A 3 m tall electrified fence has been installed in a 1.5 km2 perimeter surrounding SCP-2640.
A total of 4 No fewer that 8 Xyank/Anastasakos Constant Temporal Sinks (XACTS), hereafter referred to as an XACTS Array, are to be placed surrounding the 5500 m2 area. Due to the remote location, the XACTS Array is to be powered by a subterranean miniaturized pressurized water reactor. The array must be failover redundant and maintained by Foundation personnel, stationed on site.
The Disinformation Bureau is to maintain the current dissemination campaign. Witnesses to SCP-2640-1 are to be administered Class-B amnestics.
Description
SCP-2640 is an unstable temporal anomaly centered on a 5000 m2 area near Gurdon, Arkansas. The area is a heavily forested pine thicket, bisected by a Union Pacific Railroad line that runs from northeast to southwest. The railway features one iron trestle bridge, which is the epicenter of SCP-2640. No other vehicular or pedestrian roads enter the area affected by SCP-2640.
Within the area of SCP-2640, SCP-2640-1 may manifest.
SCP-2640-1 is an intangible floating orb of iridescent light. It may manifest alone or in groups; however, no more than 12 have been seen at once. It has been known to manifest at any time; however, it is much more noticeable at night. The light produced by SCP-2640-1 varies in intensity, and has been measured between 75-450 lux. The wavelength of the light measures between 380-490 nm, and appears bluish-white to the human eye. SCP-2640-1 normally float and travel slowly, but have shown the capability to move at speeds approaching 60 kph.
When an instance of SCP-2640-1 measures under 150 lux, it does not show any response to stimuli or environment. In instances measuring over 150 lux, it will interact with human presence, following subjects from a distance of no less than 20 meters, and will not move closer; instead, moving away if approached. Conversely, instances approaching 450 lux are very active, and will often interact with subjects.
In rare instances, SCP-2640-1 has been shown to float through a subject. In these instances, subjects report a feeling described as "being suspended in liquid" or "floating in a swimming pool", although they show no outward changes. The feeling begins as soon as SCP-2640-1 makes physical contact with a subject, and passes as soon SCP-2640-1 is no longer making contact.
Instances of SCP-2640-1 are incapable of leaving the area affected by SCP-2640. When they reach the boundary, instances of SCP-2640-1 will decrease in luminosity until they become invisible.
SCP-2640-1 - image captured during testing
Addenda: SCP-2640-1 has been colloquially known to local residents as the "Gurdon Light" or the "Spook Light" and, prior to containment, was a tourist attraction—particularly around the holiday of Halloween. Local legends and mythology attribute SCP-2640-1 to the lantern of a railroad worker who was killed when he fell into the path of a train. The legend states that the man's head was separated from his body and was never found, and that the light that people see comes from his lantern as he searches for it.
The Disinformation Bureau's campaign explains that SCP-2640-1 is caused by the discharge of piezoelectricity from the stresses of underground quartz crystals and the New Madrid fault line. Further, the current containment protocols have been enacted for the safety of the general public, as the piezoelectric discharges have proven to be dangerous. SCP personnel on-station for containment of SCP-2640 are explained as scientists employed by the Federal Bureau of Land Management to analyze the phenomenon.