Prince Harry has finally published his long-awaited memoir, Spare, and as one can expect from anything slathered with royal honey, it’s selling like hotcakes. The book is supposed to tell his side of the story, how his family’s rule has shaped him, his time at war, and his well-documented exit from royalty hand in hand with his polarizing American wife.

For Harry, there was likely an incredible financial incentive and the promise of riches that would probably have never come had he remained a backup to the throne his entire life. His story proves that every so often, a person is scorned by an organization they were once part of and even loved, only to turn their backs against that very institution, telling their story and outing secrets that were never meant for the public eye.

Here are ten examples of members of secret societies who have spilled the beans.

Related: Top 10 Things Possibly Hidden In The Vatican Secret Archives

10 John Robison—Freemasons

A scientist with a long-established reputation in the British scientific community, John Robison was also a professor at Edinburgh University and an authority on mathematics and optics. In the late 1700s, Robison was also the author of Proofs of a Conspiracy against all the Religions and Governments of Europe, a book about the reach of the Freemasons. In particular, it focused on a Masonic cell—a source of hundreds and thousands of ominous conspiracy theories—the Illuminati. As a Mason himself, he had insider information about the workings of the organization and wrote about it all. As you might expect, the first edition sold out shortly after release and was published many times after that.

From Edinburgh, he witnessed the fall of the French monarchy and the dispossessing of the church as well as the entire French Revolution. This, he subsequently blamed on the Freemasons, suggesting that all the agents involved in the revolution were mere pawns in a much bigger game with ambitious ends.^[1]

9 Ed Decker—Mormon Church

Born in 1935, Ed Decker was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (or LDS Church) before he became a prominent member of the Christian group for ex-Mormons called Saints Alive in Jesus. Considered one of the most influential people with regard to the Mormon Church, Decker (in collaboration with Dave Hunt) penned a book known as The God Makers in which he exposed the inner workings of the church.

Decker’s relationship with the Mormon Church waned when he was exposed to the beliefs of other groups critical of Mormonism. He decided he could no longer live according to the premise that its founder, Joseph Smith, was called upon by God to restore pure Christianity to the world.^[2]

8 Stetson Kennedy—the KKK

Stetson Kennedy, a writer who documented life in the Depression era, produced a book showcasing the inner mechanisms of the notorious Ku Klux Klan. The work he was most known for, a book known as The Klan Unmasked, which hit the shelves in 1954, was set in motion in the 1940s when he set himself the goal of exposing the organization and its efforts to terrorize black citizens in the region.

In this book, he exposed many things that were not known to the public before then, like their folklore, secret handshakes, and passwords, as well as mocking their white sheet attire. With evidence collected from the grand dragon himself, he provided the IRS with enough information to press for collecting a $685,000 tax lien from the Klan. He also provided assistance with the drafting of a brief used by the state of Georgia to revoke the Klan’s national corporate charter and also testified in other Klan-related cases. Kennedy passed away at the age of 94 after decades of tormenting Klansmen.^[3]

7 Heinrich Himmler—Nazis

The architect of the Holocaust, the right-hand man of Adolf Hitler himself, kept a diary. Diaries kept by Himmler, compiled by Himmler’s assistant, covered most of the war and were discovered in 2013. Although Himmler did not technically “spill the beans,” as the title of the article suggests, they do provide a sobering account of one of history’s most vile men.

The diaries include over a thousand pages documenting day-to-day life, executions of Nazi-allied officers in Poland who refused to fight, and other details all the way to the Final Solution. They add depth to the understanding of Himmler’s character and the atrocious acts he gave the order for. One particular such order was to equip Auschwitz concentration camp with new guard dogs that could rip the prisoners apart. The diaries are personal and do not give insight into his emotional well-being or his relationships, but is that really necessary?^[4]

6 Jeannie Mills—People’s Temple

Jeannie Mills, her husband Al, and their two children left the People’s Temple in 1974. Previously known as Elmer and Deanna Mertla, they rose to positions of responsibility within the ranks of the church, with Deanna serving as the head of the Temple’s publication office and Elmer as their official photographer. After they left the church, the husband and wife pairing became two of the most vocal critics, also founding the Human Freedom Center, which acted as a refuge for other defectors from the temple. After the Jonestown tragedy, the center offered itself as a place to go for survivors.

In February 1980, the couple, along with their daughter (15 years old at the time), were murdered in their home in Berkley, igniting rumors that a death squad made up of previous members of the church had taken their lives. Evidence later showed that the sole survivor of the ordeal, their son Eddie Mills, was perhaps not as innocent as initially suggested, quelling some fears about the church death squads.^[5]

5 Leah Remini—Scientology

Known for her supporting role in the popular sitcom King of Queens, Leah Remini was also a member of the Church of Scientology. Brought into the church at the young age of eight when her mother converted, Remini’s decision to leave the church ultimately came down to her own nine-year-old daughter. One month after her exit from the group, Remini filed a missing person’s report for Scientology leader David Miscavige’s wife, Shelly, who has not been seen since 2007.

Since then, she has been an active opponent of the ideologies of the church and throws her weight behind cases against its members. She also produced a show about the inner workings of the religion called Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath.^[6]

4 India and Catherine Oxenberg—NXIVM

Catherine and her daughter India signed up for NXIVM classes that were advertised as workshops to develop their entrepreneurial skills. It was at these workshops that India was recruited into a secret society within the organization, which ultimately ruined her relationship with her mother. It took the pair seven years to free themselves from the sex cult. Catherine eventually penned a memoir about her experience trying to save her daughter from the cult-like group to no avail.

India eventually saw the folly in her ways. The group founder, Keith Raniere, was found guilty of racketeering, sex trafficking, and possession of child pornography in connection with the group.^[7]

3 Janja Lalich—Democratic Workers Party

The Democratic Workers Party (DWP) was created in the U.S. in the 1970s by a collective of women led by Marlene Dixon. The party was one of the more controversial attempts to create a Marxist-Leninist party in the U.S., which championed sectarianism toward the forces on the left. The organization disbanded in 1985, but not before establishing a cult-like following for their primitive conception of Leninism and the Leninist party.

One of the party members and defectors, Janja Lalich, joined the DWP and was exposed to a range of strange requests and rules by which the party controlled her income and cut her off from her family entirely. She was ordered to pick a name and burn her belongings and was taken to book for spending time with her dying mother. Lalich has since become a sociologist and writer and has written numerous books about cults and coercion, exposing how these organizations work and recruit.^[8]

2 Joe Valachi—The Mafia (aka Cosa Nostra)

Joe Valachi, an American gangster who turned state informer in 1962, held a high rank in the Mafia, equivalent to that of sergeant, and was a member of the Lucky Luciano’s mob family. Convicted of drug-related charges and sentenced to prison, Valachi received the promise of death from Vito Genovese. In a flat panic, Valachi killed a fellow prisoner in paranoia-induced rage, then opened up about the entire organization to the U.S. Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs, the FBI, the Department of Justice, and the U.S. Senate in retaliation to the death threats he received.

Considered one of the most influential informants in organized crime history, Valachi was on a mission to destroy the underworld that had betrayed him and put a $100,000 bounty on his head. He had lost his wife and his mob family, and consumed with guilt, he relied on government protection to keep him alive until his final days when a heart attack finally killed the rat.^[9]

1 Carlos Lehder—Medellín Drug Cartel

Lehder, who dipped his toes into the criminal underbelly by smuggling stolen cars into Canada and the American East Coast, which led to his incarceration, quickly made friends with the wrong people. He soon became a key player in the cocaine import business, persuading Goerge Jung to use planes to transport the drugs. Fast forward a few years when Lehder had worked his way up the ranks of the Medellín cartel, where he fell out of favor with the notorious Pablo Escobar. He was arrested shortly after that and sentenced to life in prison.

Authorities agreed to reduce Lehder’s jail term on the condition that he testify against former Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega, who had ties with the Medellín cartel and allowed them to ship cocaine through Panama. Lehder was placed under witness protection and eventually released from prison after serving his reduced sentence. He was deported to Germany, where he held citizenship through his father.^[10]

The pages of astronomy books are packed with old mysteries. Thanks to the advancement of technology, experts can now look back and solve some of the gnarliest space mysteries on record. From the sudden appearance of a “star” 900 years ago above China to the truth about the famous Wow Signal, here are ten cosmic enigmas that have finally been cracked.

10 Antarctica’s Missing Iron Meteorites

Some space mysteries exist on Earth. One such riddle can be found in Antarctica. This frosty corner of the globe is where most meteorites are recovered. This abundance has nothing to do with location but instead with color differences. It’s easier to spot dark cosmic debris against the white expanse of this region than in places with forests or sand dunes.

Thousands of space rocks enter our atmosphere every year, so one might think that every type of meteorite can be found in Antarctica. Not so. The snow-covered continent is strangely empty of iron meteorites.

The mystery lasted for decades until 2016. That year, UK researchers released a study that suggested Antarctica has plenty of iron meteorites—they are just well hidden. Their iron content ensures that these meteorites become hotter than other space rocks when they enter our atmosphere. Once they impact ice or snow, they’ll burrow under the surface (melt their way down, really) and completely disappear from sight. Antarctica probably has a treasure trove of iron-rich meteorites; we just can’t see them.^[1]

9 No Green Comet Tails

Astronomers have never recorded a comet with a green tail. This was odd because many comets develop radiant green heads as they fly closer to the sun. What was stopping the color from spreading to their tails? Interestingly, this question went unsolved for 90 years.

Since the 1930s, researchers suspected dicarbon could explain the whole thing. Dicarbon is a chemical that forms when the organic matter on the comet’s head reacts to sunlight, causing the green color. Unfortunately, sunlight also destroys dicarbon, which could explain why the chemical never survives long enough to reach a comet’s tail.

In 2021, this theory was proved in an amazing way. Scientists had to recreate the process, and that was no easy task. Dicarbon only exists in extreme places (like space), and it’s also a volatile chemical. In a world first, they created dicarbon, and while inside a vacuum chamber, it was brought into contact with gas and lasers to simulate the conditions in space. The lasers, in particular, proved that the sun’s radiation ripped apart the dicarbon before it could turn a comet’s tail green.^[2]

8 The Mystery of Jovian Lightning

Ancient astronomers theorized for centuries that the largest planet in the solar system had lightning, but it wasn’t confirmed until 1979 when NASA’s Voyager 1 spacecraft hurtled past Jupiter. However, apart from confirming an old suspicion, Voyager 1 also discovered that Jovian lightning only appeared near the planet’s poles. In comparison, Earth’s lightning is more common among the equator.

It took another flyby to understand why lightning bolts avoided Jupiter’s midriff like the plague. In recent years, the craft Juno buzzed Jupiter and identified heat as the reason why lightning never zings the planet’s equator.

Earth catches the brunt of the sun’s warmth around the equator which fuels rising hot air—the very thing that lightning needs to form. The process is reversed on Jupiter in a peculiar way. Once sunlight makes Jupiter’s equator toasty, the world’s upper atmosphere stabilizes in such a way that it suppresses rising warm air. For this reason, lighting strikes freely at the poles where there is no atmospheric stability, and heat from inside the planet pushes hot air upward.^[3]

7 A Strange Light Show

In 2022, the James Webb Telescope beamed back a fantastic photograph to Earth. It showed a bright light at the center of several rings. Cutting through the rings were eight spikes of light that radiated from the center outward, almost creating a spiderweb effect. When the bizarre but beautiful image hit social media, people had one question, “What the heck is this?”

Researchers quickly determined that the spikes were a “fault” on the telescope’s part. It tended to produce such anomalies when photographing bright objects in space. Since the spikes weren’t real, that left the unusual concentric circles around the star.

A closer look revealed that the “light” came from two stars. They orbited each other in an eight-year cycle, and each time the stars came close to each other and moved away again, that’s the moment when they produced dust and threw out another ring.^[4]

6 The Glowing Blobs

In 2000, astronomers stumbled upon a bizarre space… thing. Billions of light-years from Earth floated a blob. It was as big as a galaxy and also glowed as brightly as one. But here’s the mystery—the giant space bubble had no stars, only hydrogen gas. So, what caused it to shine so brilliantly?

All told, about 30 blobs were eventually discovered. However, it wasn’t until dozens of astronomers, countless telescopes, and advanced simulations came together that their light source was revealed. Unexpectedly, stars were involved—but in a very unusual way.

As it turns out, these mammoth orbs are star factories. Deep inside the blobs, fresh stars are being produced at a rate 100 times faster than those born in our Milky Way galaxy. For some reason, nearby galaxies also pour star-forming materials into the chaos. But the actual light comes from the moment when new stars are born. In that instant, the stars exude a burst of bright ultraviolet light, which scatters in the hydrogen gas, causing the blob to glow.^[5]

5 A 900-Year-Old Mystery

In 1181, Japanese and Chinese astronomers noticed a difference in the night sky. A new light had appeared, shone as brightly as Saturn, and stayed for six months. The description given by these early star gazers provided modern researchers with enough reason to believe that they were describing a supernova. This celestial explosion became quite famous in scientific circles, mostly because nobody could find any trace of it.

In 2021, roughly 900 years after the mystery of the missing supernova began, the origins of the so-called “Chinese Guest Star” were finally discovered. The ancient reports stated that the light had appeared between the Chinese constellations of Huagai and Chuanshe. In this region were a star and nebula thought to have been created when two White Dwarf stars merged. Such an event is known to trigger supernovas and the location, description of the light, and the age of the nebula all fit the events of 1181.^[6]

4 That Time When Betelgeuse Blinked

Stargazers are very familiar with Orion. This star constellation is also known as “the hunter,” and Betelgeuse is the red supergiant that marks Orion’s eastern shoulder. The star is among the most luminous in the night sky, so when it suddenly dimmed in September 2019, astronomers quickly noticed. For a while, the fading continued, and by February 2020, Betelgeuse had dimmed by an unprecedented 35 percent.

Although the star regained its former brilliance, experts were at a loss. Nobody could explain why the red giant had “blinked.” Putting their best guesses on the table, researchers theorized that the dimming was the result of a dust cloud or a drop in temperature. During a multinational attempt, researchers combed through observatory data and satellite images and realized that both theories were correct.

Betelgeuse had ejected a massive cloud of gas from its innards, but it wasn’t until the star’s photosphere started to cool that the gas condensed into dust. This dusty atmosphere temporarily cloaked the star’s light. ^[7]

3 The Lunar Fireball Photograph

In 1953, Dr. Leon Stuart from Oklahoma photographed an event on the Moon. He believed that the gigantic fireball he captured was a plume of vaporized rock. If true, that would make him the first person to witness and document a lunar impact. It became known as “Stuart’s Event,” but nobody, not even astronauts or space probes, could find the crater.

Yet, the photograph proved that something had happened on the Moon in 1953. In 2003, NASA researchers analyzed the image and calculated that the object would’ve left a fresh-looking crater up to 1.24 miles (2 kilometers) across. Taking cues from the lunar landscape, they searched a grid of roughly 22 miles (35 kilometers) using photographs taken in 1994 by the lunar-orbiting Clementine spacecraft.

Incredibly, the NASA team found Stuart’s crater. It was smaller, measuring 0.93 miles (1.5 kilometers) across, but it was fresh, had the right appearance, and was also located in the middle of the famous photograph. The size of the crater also matched the estimated energy output of the impact, which would’ve been 35 times stronger than the atomic bomb that had devastated Hiroshima.^[8]

2 The Impossible Twin Galaxies

No two galaxies are alike. Keeping this rule in mind, scientists were blown away when they discovered identical twin galaxies in 2013. The pair even sat next to each other, making it immediately obvious that they were freakishly similar. The odd phenomenon became known as Hamilton’s Object.

No theory made sense until someone suggested, in 2015, that gravitational lensing might be responsible. This rare phenomenon is bonkers. When large celestial bodies line up in a row, they can actually curve light and space-time in such a way that when astronomers view the objects through telescopes, they appear closer than they really are. Very often, they also produce mirages of themselves. The result? The illusion that two identical objects are sitting side by side.

When researchers looked closer at the setup that might be causing Hamilton’s Object, they discovered that between Earth and the “twins” sat a massive cluster of galaxies. The latter is causing the duplicate effect, but in reality, Hamilton’s Object is a single spiral galaxy.^[9]

1 Origins of the Wow Signal

In 1977, a legendary mystery was born. Astronomer Jerry Ehman captured radio waves from space that were unlike anything he’d ever seen before (or anyone else, for that matter). He wrote “Wow!” next to the printed signal, and the name stuck. Even today, the Wow Signal is touted as proof of alien contact or, at the very least, an unsolved mystery. In truth, the origins had already been discovered in 2017.

Researchers from St Petersburg College suspected that comets might be the culprits. More specifically, a pair called 266P/Christensen and 335P/Gibbs. Both were enveloped in clouds of hydrogen gas. This detail is important because hydrogen naturally emits 1420MHz. This was the same radio frequency the “alien” signal emitted.

The telescope that picked up the Wow Signal was pointing at a specific group of stars in the Sagittarius constellation, and both comets were confirmed to have been in the area at the time. A closer look also revealed that 266/P Christensen was probably the comet that sparked the 40-year-old mystery. When its radio signals were compared to those from the Wow Signal, they were a match.^[10]