What Is Area 51?
Area 51 is an area deep in the Nevada Desert that has attracted a lot of attention over the years. The US government is very secretive about what goes on here, and rumors and conspiracy theories ranging from alien activity to powerful top-secret weapons are abound.
The site has recently been in the news thanks to a movement on social media encouraging a million people to turn up and storm the site, but there are doubts over whether this will happen. These factors lead to the question of just what is Area 51?
1. US Air Force Base
The official line is that the facility is a US Air Force base. This would make a lot of sense because it is common for any military to want their installations to be well away from the public eye. As an air force base, its remote location will not be a problem because the airport allows goods and people to come and go with ease. We know that there is an airport at the facility, that much has been confirmed by the government. Indeed, one of the official names of the site is Homey Airport. It even has its own ICAO code (KXTA). While that much is not a mystery, exactly what goes on at the site is less clear.
2. Test Facility
Something else that we do know about the facility is that it is used for testing advanced prototype aircraft. In the past, it has been used as a test facility for top-secret planes such as the U2 spy plane, the SR-71 Blackbird, and the F-117 Nighthawk, among others.
New experimental planes will often have appearances that are quite unlike previous aircraft. It is thought that people living in the area getting a glimpse of these peculiar flying craft contributes to sightings of alleged UFOs. The facility has an especially extended runway and other facilities to allow them to accommodate these planes.
3. Foreign Technology Facility
There is a near constant arms race going on between different nations. Each nation is always trying to out-do the others when it comes to developing technology. Their developments are often kept top-secret as they try and prevent the others from making even small gains in development.
Starting from the 1960s, the base has been used to test and evaluate aircraft that have been captured from the Soviet Union and elsewhere. This could give them the opportunity to learn more about the technology, while also giving them a greater understanding of a potential enemy’s military capabilities.
4. The Majestic 12
The Majestic 12 can be thought of as an organization that is similar to the Men in Black. It is allegedly a top-secret collection of high-ranking politicians and military leaders that have the role of managing alien investigations. Many conspiracy theorists claim that Area 51 is the headquarters of this supposed group.
There is no evidence to suggest that these claims are at all true. Indeed, there is no evidence that there are any secretive institutions, anywhere, that investigate aliens. Despite the complete lack of supporting evidence, a lot of people claim that this group was involved with the alleged Roswell incident in 1947.
5. Roswell 1947
Roswell is a city that is located in New Mexico. In 1947, an incident occurred that have conspiracy theorists convinced that the US government was covering up a crashed UFO. The official line is that the crashed objects were simply high-altitude research balloons, but this does nothing to stop the conspiracy theorists.
Many conspiracy theorists are convinced that Area 51 played a key role in the alleged cover up. It is believed that the alleged crashed UFO was taken there to be studied and kept away from public view. Some even claim that aliens discovered at the site were taken to Area 51 for an autopsy, and that surviving aliens were even held there in captivity.
6. Weather Control
Being able to control the weather would allow any nation to wield incredible power. It would give them the ability to turn off rain over enemy farmlands, potentially cutting off access to food for millions of people. It would also allow them to control their own weather, ensuring favorable conditions.
We can influence the weather to some degree. For example, cloud seeding is a method often used to help encourage rain clouds to form, but this is some way away from the kind of weather control that supposedly happens at Area 51. However, nobody has been able to present any genuine evidence that the claims of weather control are true.
7. International Underground Railway
The idea of a railway below ground is nothing amazing or new. Indeed, the first underground railways were built over 100 years ago, and towns and cities around the world have underground systems of their own. Some companies are also developing high-speed “tubes” that can transport people from city to city at high speed.
Some conspiracy theorists insist that Area 51 is the home of a long-distance underground rail network. It is alleged that this network does not just go to different cities, but even to other countries tens of thousands of miles away. No evidence has been presented that there is any truth to these claims.
8. Exotic Weapon Facility
Mankind has been able to develop some incredibly powerful weaponry, with nuclear weapons perhaps being the most powerful of them all. Such is the devastating power of these weapons that efforts are made to prevent their proliferation, lest they one day destroy civilization as we know it. It is thought by some, however, that many nations are still secretly developing weapons of mass destruction.
Some conspiracy theorists are convinced that Area 51 is used for such research. While it would be true that we are still developing new weapons, they are unlikely to be anything on the scale of those that conspiracy theorists propose.
9. Intergalactic Meeting Facility
Many people are convinced that we have already been visited by aliens. Some conspiracy theorists even take it further and are convinced that not only have they visited us, but they visit regularly and are in constant communication with world leaders, or at least with leaders from the USA.
Many conspiracy theorists are convinced that the reason for the secrecy behind Area 51 is that it actually holds intergalactic meeting facilities. Some claim that the site has the relevant space facilities for spaceships to land and take off, and high-level conference facilities to host intergalactic dignitaries. Despite insisting these claims are true, nobody yet has been able to bring forward compelling evidence.
10. Alien Space Port
According to some people, Area 51 is even home to an intergalactic space port. Apparently, ships come and go from throughout the galaxy, using our planet as a staging post from which to explore the rest of the universe. Some believe that here, aliens can also refuel their ships and carry out any repairs before moving onto the next stage of their journey.
A lot of people claim to have seen spaceships coming and going, with alleged sightings common in the region. As mentioned before, however, it is likely that these people only saw experimental airplanes. As yet, there is no evidence to support these claims.
