Two ships with their trackers turned off pass near Nord Stream 2 before gas leak

This is reported by Wired referring to the analysis data of the SpaceKnow company, which monitors satellite data.

"We found several dark vessels of significant size that passed through the area of interest to us. They had their beacons turned off, meaning there was no information about their movements, and they tried to hide information about their location and general information from the world," said Jerry Javornicky, CEO and co-founder of SpaceKnow.

According to him, the information was obtained by analyzing images from several satellites.

"We have 38 special algorithms that allow us to detect military equipment. The SpaceKnow system can detect specific aircraft models on landing strips," says Javornicky.

Once the ships were identified, the researchers reported their findings to NATO officials investigating the Nord Stream incidents. Jerry Javornicky said NATO officials had asked SpaceKnow to provide more information.

NATO spokesperson Oana Lungescu said NATO did not comment on "details of our support or sources used" but confirmed that NATO considers the incident "a deliberate and irresponsible act of sabotage" and has increased its presence in the Baltic and North Seas.

• On September 26, a sudden pressure drop occurred in the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. Subsequently, it became known that explosions happened on the lines of the Nord Stream and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea. On October 3, the Swedish coast guard recorded repeated gas leaks from Nord Stream 2. On October 4, Sweden closed the Baltic Sea area around a gas leak from a pipeline that occurred on September 26.

• Meanwhile, on October 29, 2022, the Russian ministry of defence called the British military guilty of "planning, ensuring and implementing" the explosion of the underwater part of the Nord Stream and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines.

• According to the former commander of Britain's Joint Forces Command, Russia could accuse the British Navy of blowing up Nord Stream to have a reason to attack the European energy infrastructure.