Orbs on stills cameras and camcorders were not identified and called 'orbs' until the mid-1990s, although Orbs did exist before this they were rare and did not excite the paranormal interest.
The 'discovery' of orbs took place when, suddenly, paranormal researchers were startled by orbs appearing on dozens of photographs of 'haunted houses'.
This coincided with the mass production and distribution of digital stills cameras.
In 2002 there was an explosion of paranormal investigation groups following the airing of the first season of UK cable TV show Most Haunted. Despite the OfCom ruling that Most Haunted is a program for entertainment and "should not be taken seriously" they have not retracted their assertions about orbs. As such many armchair enthusiasts are still convinced that orbs are paranormal.
For more indepth analysis http://www.theorbzone.com/explanation.htm
Subject: An Orb History 
Fri May 15, 2009 12:42 pm