What was happening in the years leading up to 1552AD?

Peter Fairlie-Clarke responded to the post on torrential rain and portents in the sky on 17th February and provided us with a source that might just be what is required, the Johann Corian Chronicle which was written down in 1550AD. In the previous 20 years there were a number of comets and what appears to be atmospheric portents that are perhaps associated with a dusty atmosphere or over active aurorae seen  above central Europe, pulsating on the horizon and interpreted, in a religiously orientated manner, as manifestations of the Almighty struggling with strange beasts and demonic beings. The same phenomena, outside the Christian world, and the Protestant movement of the time, may have been viewed differently. We have earthquakes and blazing stars, one of which stood over Constantinople for eleven days. A dragon caused damage at Turkish castles and all kinds of wonders in the sky. At one point a ferocious thunderclap struck and the whole land trembled. Afterwards there appeared in the sky three red crosses, with, in the middle of them the image of a man with a fiery sword and a multitude of people riding horses. Then there appeared an awful dragon behind the man and devoured him with the sword. After this the sky reddened and remained so for an hour. On another occasion a dark cloud appeared – as black as the night. This persisted for more than a day before disappearing. In 1549 there was a prodigy of the Moon – that had the appearance of three moons (refraction). Then appeared another wonderful vision, a fiery lion and an eagle with two heads. After they clashed the Moon reappeared. There were visions of Christ (or what was interpreted as Christ) on a cross between two thrones – and accompanied by the apostles. Hence, we may conclude something strange was happening in the sky leading up to the images in the Book of Miracles of 1552, something difficult to define precisely but involving comets and atmospheric phenomena, and possibly a meteor storm.