Strange Evidence (2017–…): Season 1, Episode 8 - Lake of the Dead - full transcript
Marine scientists discover a gruesome underwater death zone that seems to kill anything that dares to enter. When apocalyptic skies appear during a deadly earthquake in Ecuador, residents fear it's the end of days.
Narrator: WORLDWIDE, 300
MILLION SURVEILLANCE CAMERAS
ARE WATCHING US.
ON OUR STREETS, AT WORK, AND IN OUR HOMES,
THEY CAPTURE THINGS THAT SEEM IMPOSSIBLE.
IT DEFIES THE LAWS OF PHYSICS.
Man: THIS IS UNBELIEVABLE, MAN.
Narrator: EXPERTS CARRY
OUT FORENSIC ANALYSIS
OF THESE UNUSUAL EVENTS.
THERE'S GOT TO BE SOME
EXPLANATION FOR WHAT'S GOING ON.
[ SCREAMS ]
Narrator: COMING UP...
INFRARED CAMERAS TRACK A MYSTERIOUS OBJECT
IN THE CHILEAN SKIES...
WE HAVE A GENUINE U.F.O.
AND IT SEEMS TO BE EXPELLING
SOMETHING INTO THE AIR.
Narrator: ...A DEEP-SEA DIVE PLUNGES INTO
AN UNDERWATER LAKE OF DEATH...
Cordes: IT WAS SURPRISING TO
SEE A LOT OF THESE DEAD ANIMALS.
AND IT DOESN'T REALLY MAKE ANY SENSE.
Narrator: ...GHOSTLY COLUMNS OF
LIGHT BEAM DOWN FROM THE HEAVENS...
WHAT IT IS? IT'S JUST SO UNUSUAL.
Narrator: ...AND SURVEILLANCE
CAMERAS CAPTURE
APOCALYPTIC SKIES AS
AN EARTHQUAKE STRIKES...
WHY WOULD EARTHQUAKES CAUSE
LIGHT? WHAT'S ACTUALLY GOING ON?
Narrator: BIZARRE PHENOMENA...
...MYSTERIES CAUGHT ON SURVEILLANCE...
WHAT'S THE TRUTH BEHIND
THIS STRANGE EVIDENCE?
A MILITARY HELICOPTER
SPOTS A STRANGE OBJECT
EMITTING AN OMINOUS-LOOKING PLUME.
IT LOOKS LIKE SPILLED INK ACROSS THE SKY.
Narrator: THE MYSTERY
CRAFT IS INVISIBLE TO RADAR.
MAYBE THERE'S SOME
SORT OF STEALTH AIRCRAFT.
IF YOU SOMETHING THAT'S UNIDENTIFIED FLYING
IN YOUR AIRSPACE,
YOU NEED TO FIGURE OUT WHAT IT IS.
THE FOOTAGE REALLY DOES
MAKE ME THINK OF U.F.O.s.
♪♪
Narrator: SANTIAGO, CHILE
...NOVEMBER 11, 2014.
A CHILEAN NAVY HELICOPTER PATROLS THE SKIES
ON A ROUTINE DAYTIME MISSION.
ONBOARD, THE CAPTAIN
AND A NAVAL TECHNICIAN.
HIS JOB... TO RUN TESTS
ON A NEW STATE-OF-THE-ART
INFRARED CAMERA SYSTEM.
THIS MILITARY HELICOPTER IS MADE
TO SPOT THINGS ON THE GROUND.
IT IS LOOKING FOR TARGETS ON THE LAND,
ANYTHING MAN-MADE THAT GIVES
OUT A DIFFERENT THERMAL SIGNATURE.
Narrator: 1:52 P.M., THE
CHOPPER FLIES TO 4,500 FEET
AT 150 MILES AN HOUR.
OUT OF A CLOUDLESS SKY, THEY
SPOT A STRANGE FLYING OBJECT.
THE TECHNICIAN SWITCHES
ON THE INFRARED CAMERA
TO GET A BETTER IMAGE.
YOU SEE A BLACK BLOB THAT SEEMS TO BE,
MAYBE, ALMOST, OVAL-SHAPED,
AND YOU ALSO SEE THAT
IT SEEMS TO ALMOST HAVE
A LITTLE BIT OF A HALO AROUND IT.
Narrator: THE PILOT ESTIMATES THE OBJECT
IS TRAVELING AT THE SAME ALTITUDE
AS THE CHOPPER, AROUND 35 TO 40 MILES AWAY,
CLOSE ENOUGH TO POSE A THREAT.
THE CREW'S MILITARY TRAINING KICKS IN.
BUT THERE WAS NO RESPONSE,
WHICH RATHER DEEPENS THE MYSTERY.
Narrator: STRANGER STILL, THE ONBOARD RADAR
IS UNABLE TO DETECT THE OBJECT.
♪♪
[ MAN SPEAKING SPANISH ]
THE PILOT CHECKS WITH AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL
AT SANTIAGO AIRPORT 35 MILES AWAY.
THEY GET BACK TO THEM.
THEY DON'T SEE ANYTHING IN
THE AIRSPACE THAT HE DESCRIBED.
IT MAKES YOU WONDER, WHAT COULD IT BE?
WHAT HAS THOSE PROPERTIES
OF BEING VISIBLE ON INFRARED,
BUT NO VISIBLE ON RADAR.
Narrator: THE MILITARY CHOPPER'S
CAMERA PICKS UP ANYTHING
WITH A HEAT SIGNAL.
THE HOTTER THE OBJECT, THE
DARKER IT APPEARS ON SCREEN.
EIGHT MINUTES INTO THIS STRANGE ENCOUNTER,
THE INFRARED CAMERA
RECORDS THE UNIDENTIFIED CRAFT
EJECTING A THICK PLUME.
WHATEVER IT IS, THE PLUME
IS REGISTERING INTENSE HEAT.
THE PILOT HAS NO IDEA WHAT
LEVEL OF THREAT HE'S FACING.
IF YOU HAVE SOMETHING
THAT'S UNIDENTIFIED FLYING
IN YOUR AIRSPACE,
YOU NEED TO FIGURE OUT WHAT IT IS.
Narrator: THE CREW TRACKS THE
STRANGE OBJECT FOR NINE MINUTES,
BUT A CRITICALLY LOW FUEL SUPPLY
FORCES THEM TO RETURN TO BASE.
THE ENCOUNTER IS SO ALARMING
THE PILOT'S REPORT GOES STRAIGHT
TO THE CHILEAN GOVERNMENT
AGENCY INVESTIGATING U.F.O.s.
THEY ANALYZE THE TAPE.
THEY GET ALL SPUN UP, PUT
AN INVESTIGATION TOGETHER,
AND START REALLY TRYING TO
DETERMINE WHAT THE IMAGE SHOWS,
AND WHAT IS GOING ON IN THEIR AIRSPACE.
Narrator: YET, AFTER TWO
YEARS THEY DRAW A BLANK.
IN DESPERATION, THE CHILEAN GOVERNMENT
RELEASES THE FOOTAGE ONLINE.
CONSPIRACY THEORIES FLOOD THE INTERNET.
WHAT IS BEYOND DISPUTE IS
THAT THERE IS SOMETHING FLYING
IN THE AIR THAT IS A DIFFERENT TEMPERATURE
THAN THE AIR AROUND IT,
AND IT SEEMS TO BE EXPELLING
SOMETHING INTO THE AIR.
Narrator: ANALYSTS CONSIDER
HOW THE OBJECT CAN
BE INVISIBLE TO RADAR.
MAYBE THERE'S SOME SORT OF STEALTH AIRCRAFT
INVOLVED IN THE INCIDENT.
NOW, A STEALTH AIRCRAFT IS
ONE THAT'S MADE TO EVADE RADAR.
THE SHAPE OF THE AIRCRAFT,
THE MATERIALS THAT IT USES,
IT'S ALL BEING DONE TO
BAFFLE A RADAR RETURN.
Narrator: BUT A STEALTH CRAFT
DOESN'T USUALLY SHOW UP IN INFRARED
OR EMIT A VISIBLE PLUME.
SO THE IDEA THAT IT'S A STEALTH AIRCRAFT
THAT CAN'T BE SEEN ON RADAR,
BUT HAS SUCH A BIG INFRARED SIGNATURE,
CASTS SOME DOUBT ON THAT THEORY ENTIRELY.
Narrator: ROBERT FISHER OF
EDINBURGH UNIVERSITY, SCOTLAND,
IS AN EXPERT IN OPTICAL PHENOMENA.
HE SUSPECTS THE INFRARED
IMAGE COULD BE DISGUISING
A MORE FAMILIAR OBJECT.
I THINK WHAT WE'RE
LOOKING AT IS, POTENTIALLY,
A PASSENGER PLANE,
KIND OF, JUST MOVING AWAY FROM US.
IT'S GOT IT'S FOUR JET ENGINES.
IT'S PUTTING OUT LOTS OF HEAT.
Narrator: THE PROBLEM IS THAT
THE FEATURELESS BLACK BLOB
ON THE INFRARED FOOTAGE
DOESN'T LOOK ANYTHING
LIKE A REGULAR AIRPLANE.
FISHER CONSTRUCTS AN
EXPERIMENT TO TEST HIS THEORY.
NOW, WHAT THESE CANDLES
ARE GOING TO REPRESENT
ARE THE FOUR HEAT SIGNATURES
FROM THE FOUR ENGINES,
AND IF MY THEORY IS CORRECT,
AS WE MOVE AWAY FROM
OUR SIMULATED AIRPLANE,
HERE, WE SHOULD SEE
THAT THE HEAT SIGNATURES
OF THESE FOUR ENGINES
MERGE INTO JUST A SINGLE BLOB.
YOU CAN SEE THAT THEY'RE SORT OF
MERGING DOWN TO ABOUT TWO BLOBS,
AND AS I GET A BIT FURTHER
BACK, AS YOU CAN SEE, REALLY,
WE'VE JUST GOT ON BLOB,
ONE DARK BLOB REPRESENTING
THE FOUR VERY BRIGHT LIGHTS
NOW MERGED TOGETHER.
THE BLOB THAT YOU SEE IN
THE VIDEO COULD REALLY BE
JUST THE HEAT SIGNATURES
FROM THE FOUR JET ENGINES OF AN AIRPLANE
TAKEN AT QUITE A DISTANCE,
AND ALL MERGED DOWN JUST
LIKE I'VE DONE RIGHT HERE.
Narrator: IF ROBERT FISHER IS
CORRECT AND THIS IS A PLANE,
THEN HIS THEORY MAY ALSO SOLVE THE MYSTERY
OF THE TRAILING PLUME.
IT COULD BE JUST A
REGULAR, EVERYDAY AIRPLANE
THAT WE SAW ITS CONTRAILS
POINTING OFF TO THE SIDE.
Narrator: CONTRAILS ARE THIN, LINEAR CLOUDS
CREATED BY AIRCRAFT ENGINE EXHAUSTS.
WATER VAPOR WITHIN THE EXHAUST FREEZES,
LEAVING AN ICY TRAIL ACROSS THE SKY.
YET, THERE'S AN IMMEDIATE PROBLEM,
AN ANOMALY THAT THROWS THE
AIRCRAFT THEORY INTO DOUBT.
THE MILITARY CHOPPER'S INFRARED IMAGE
REGISTERS A CLEAR HEAT SIGNATURE
ON THE MYSTERY CRAFT'S TRAIL.
NORMALLY, CONTRAILS ARE BELOW FREEZING,
AND YET THIS LOOKS AS THOUGH IT'S HOT.
THAT DOESN'T MAKE ANY SENSE TO ME.
Narrator: COMING UP, A
MASSACRE BENEATH THE WAVES...
DEAD ANIMALS. I HAD NEVER
SEEN ANYTHING LIKE THAT BEFORE.
Narrator: ...A CLOSE ENCOUNTER
WITH MYSTERIOUS LIGHTS
FROM THE HEAVENS...
YOU ALMOST IMAGINE THAT
THERE'S A SPACESHIP UP THERE.
Narrator: ...AND INVESTIGATORS
DISCOVER WHY THE CHILEAN UFO
HAS GONE SILENT.
Walters: A PILOT SHOULD
RESPOND TO ALL RADIO CALLS,
ESPECIALLY FROM A MILITARY HELICOPTER.
THAT CAN BE FATAL IF YOU IGNORE IT.
Narrator: EXPERTS SUSPECT
AN UNIDENTIFIED OBJECT
CAPTURED BY A CHILEAN MILITARY HELICOPTER
MAY SIMPLY BE A REGULAR AIRPLANE,
BUT THEY'RE BAFFLED AS TO HOW
THE CRAFT'S FREEZING COLD CONTRAIL
SHOWS UP AS SUPER-HEATED
ON THE INFRARED IMAGE.
AVIATION SPECIALIST, MICK WEST,
THINKS THE HEAT DETECTION
SENSORS ON THE CAMERA
MAY BE MASKING THE TRUTH,
AND THAT THE PROBLEM LIES WITH THE CAMERA
USING THE COLD SKY AS ITS REFERENCE POINT.
THE TEMPERATURE OF THE
SKY ON INFRARED FOOTAGE
SHOWS UP AS BEING VERY, VERY COLD,
WELL BELOW THE FREEZING POINT OF WATER,
SO EVEN THINGS LIKE ICE,
EVEN THINGS LIKE CONTRAILS,
ACTUALLY SHOW UP AS BEING HOT.
Narrator: YET, CONTRAILS
USUALLY FORM ABOVE 30,000 FEET.
MICK WEST BELIEVES THAT THIS
IS A SPECIAL KIND OF CONTRAIL
VISIBLE AT LOWER ALTITUDES.
THIS TYPE OF CONTRAIL IS ONE
CALLED AN AERODYNAMIC CONTRAIL,
WHICH FORMS AT MUCH LOWER ALTITUDES
THAN REGULAR CONTRAILS,
LIKE AROUND 15,000 TO 25,000 FEET.
THE PROBLEM WITH THIS THEORY IS
THAT THE HELICOPTER HAS REPORTED
THE ALTITUDE OF BOTH THE HELICOPTER
AND THE OBJECT AS BEING 4,500 FEET.
NOW, THIS IS WAY TOO
LOW TO FORM A CONTRAIL.
Narrator: ROBERT FISHER
BELIEVES HE HAS AN ANSWER.
HE THINKS THE PILOTS MAY HAVE
MISJUDGED THE CRAFT'S ALTITUDE.
IT'S VERY DIFFICULT TO WORK
OUT BY EYE OUT FAR AWAY
SOMETHING IS JUST BY LOOKING AT IT.
EVEN THE MOST EXPERIENCED
CREW CAN HAVE SOME DIFFICULTIES.
YOU REALLY NEED SOME
KIND OF A REFERENCE POINT,
BUT HERE WE DON'T HAVE ANYTHING.
WE JUST HAVE OPEN SKY EVERYWHERE.
Narrator: IF THE CRAFT IS
FLYING AT A HIGHER ALTITUDE,
THEN INVESTIGATORS MAY HAVE
BEEN LOOKING IN THE WRONG PLACE
FOR AN ANSWER.
MICK WEST REEXAMINES
COMMERCIAL AIRCRAFT FLIGHT DATA
WITHIN 50 MILES OF THE NAVY CHOPPER.
HE IDENTIFIES AN AIRCRAFT
FLYING OUT OF SANTIAGO AIRPORT
AT EXACTLY THE TIME OF
THE CHILEAN CHOPPER'S
MYSTERY ENCOUNTER.
FURTHER CHECKS CONFIRM
IT IS A FOUR-ENGINE PLANE
HEADING TO MADRID, SPAIN.
WE SPOTTED ONE THAT
FOLLOWED, VISUALLY, THE SAME PATH
THAT WAS TRACED OUT BY THIS OBJECT.
Narrator: WEST SUSPECTS
THE AIRCRAFT'S TRUE POSITION
MAY OFFER AN EXPLANATION
FOR WHY IT DOESN'T SHOW
UP ON THE HELICOPTER RADAR.
AT THE END OF THE VIDEO THE
OBJECT IS ACTUALLY AROUND
200 MILES AWAY FROM THEM.
SO BECAUSE THEY WERE
ONLY LOOKING FOR THINGS
THAT WERE NEARBY,
THEY DIDN'T FIND THE ACTUAL OBJECT.
THEY SHOULD HAVE
LOOKED A LITTLE BIT FURTHER.
♪♪
Narrator: BUT THE MYSTERY OF
WHY THE JET FAILS TO RESPOND
TO CALLS FROM THE
MILITARY HELICOPTER REMAINS.
A PILOT SHOULD RESPOND TO ALL
RADIO CALLS DIRECTED AT THEM,
ESPECIALLY FROM A MILITARY HELICOPTER.
THAT CAN BE FATAL IF YOU IGNORE IT.
Narrator: MICK WEST BELIEVES
THE COMMERCIAL AIRCRAFT CREW
IS SIMPLY FOLLOWING
STANDARD AVIATION PROTOCOLS.
West: BECAUSE THIS WAS A PLANE
THAT WAS DEPARTING THE AIRPORT,
IT WOULD HAVE BEEN IN CONTACT
WITH THE DEPARTURE CONTROL
FOR SANTIAGO AIRPORT.
IT WOULD HAVE BEEN TALKING TO THEM,
AND SO IT WOULDN'T HAVE
HEARD THE HELICOPTER
TRYING TO HAIL IT ON THE OPEN FREQUENCY.
Narrator: WEST BELIEVES EVIDENCE
POINTS TO THE MYSTERY CRAFT
BEING A REGULAR COMMERCIAL AIRCRAFT,
BUT FOR THE CHILEAN GOVERNMENT,
IT REMAINS AN UNIDENTIFIED
AERIAL PHENOMENON.
CONSIDERING THEIR MANY RESOURCES,
IF THEY AREN'T ABLE TO IDENTIFY WHAT IT IS,
IT REALLY MAKES US WONDER
WILL WE EVER BE ABLE TO KNOW.
♪♪
Narrator: NEXT, A DEEP-SEA
DIVING CRAFT CAPTURES IMAGES
OF A MACABRE UNDERWATER GRAVEYARD.
I HAD NEVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE THAT BEFORE.
Narrator: A DEADLY AMBUSH
AWAITS ON THE OCEAN FLOOR.
Kays: THIS IS WHERE SEA LIFE GOES TO DIE,
THE EERIEST UNDERWATER
KINGDOM IN THE DARKEST DEPTHS.
♪♪
Narrator: THE GULF OF
MEXICO... MAY 8, 2014.
BIOLOGIST, ERIC CORDES,
AND HIS TEAM OF RESEARCHERS
PILOT THEIR SUBMERSIBLE
3,000 FEET DOWN INTO THE ABYSS.
MY FAVORITE THING ABOUT MY
JOB IS BEING ABLE TO GO PLACES
THAT NO ONE HAS EVER BEEN.
Narrator: CORDES' MISSION
...TO CAPTURE IMAGES
OF RARELY SEEN DEEP-SEA CREATURES.
THE TEAM HOPES TO FIND NEW SPECIES
IN THE DARKEST DEPTHS OF THE OCEAN.
IT'S LIKE A BIG FISH BOWL,
EXCEPT YOU'RE IN THE INSIDE,
AND YOU CAN SEE OUT.
YOU CAN SEE, YOU KNOW, RIGHT
PAST YOUR FEET TO THE SEA FLOOR.
YOU CAN SEE THE SURFACE
WHEN YOU'RE COMING DOWN,
ALL THE BIOLUMINESCENCE ALL AROUND YOU.
Narrator: CORDES PILOTS THE SUB
DOWN TOWARDS THE OCEAN FLOOR.
THEY REACH 4,000 FEET.
YEAH, SEAN.
WE'RE GOING TO START DRIVING
TOWARDS TARGET TWO AND THREE.
THE SUN'S LIGHT CAN'T REACH THIS FAR DOWN.
THE SUBMERSIBLE'S LIGHTS ARE THE ONLY THING
PIERCING THE DARKNESS.
OUT OF NOWHERE, CORDES
SPOTS SOMETHING ALARMING.
Cordes: DEAD ANIMALS.
I HAD NEVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE THAT BEFORE.
Narrator: CORDES HAS STUMBLED
UPON WHAT BIOLOGISTS CALL
A DEAD ZONE.
YOU SEE DEAD CRABS. YOU SEE
THIS SORT OF BLUE-GRAY COLOR.
Man: THESE LARGER ORGANISMS
REALLY DON'T LIKE TO BE IN THIS FLUID.
MAYBE THEY JUST COME HERE TO DIE.
THERE ARE QUITE A FEW
DEAD ANIMALS WE CAN SEE.
YOU KNOW, CRABS LYING ON THEIR BACK.
WE CAN SEE SHRIMP-LIKE ANIMALS
THAT HAVE OBVIOUSLY EXPIRED.
Narrator: THE SERIES OF UNEXPLAINED DEATHS
APPEARS TO BE RANDOM,
BUT CLOSER INSPECTION OF THE
FOOTAGE REVEALS A POSSIBLE CLUE.
THE DEAD CREATURES ARE
CONTAINED IN ONE AREA.
YOU HAVE THIS STRANGE VERTICAL CONTAINER,
THIS TUB, SITTING DOWN THERE,
AND THEN INSIDE THE TUB IS A MURKY WATER,
SORT OF A VERY DILUTE
MILK-LOOKING SUBSTANCE.
Narrator: IT'S A DEADLY LAKE
BIZARRELY DEEP BENEATH THE SEA.
IT SITS ON THE SEA BED.
IT DOESN'T FLOAT UP AND KIND
OF MIX WITH THE OCEAN ABOVE.
IT SITS THERE LIKE A
LAKE ON THE OCEAN FLOOR.
YOU SEE THIS BLUE LAKE,
AND THEN YOU REALIZE,
WAIT A SECOND, WE'RE ALREADY UNDERWATER.
HOW IS THERE A LAKE UNDERWATER?
Narrator: COMING UP,
WEIRD LIGHTS IN THE SKY
FORETELL A MASSIVE EARTHQUAKE IN ECUADOR.
Pablo: I WAS SURE I WAS GOING TO DIE,
AND I'M SURE A LOT OF
PEOPLE FELT THE SAME WAY.
Narrator: AND SCIENTISTS FIND EVIDENCE
THAT ANCIENT GEOLOGICAL FORCES
HAVE TRIGGERED AN UNDERSEA DEATH ZONE.
YOU CAN SEE ANIMALS GET DISORIENTED,
AND THEN DIE VERY QUICKLY.
Narrator: MARINE BIOLOGIST, ERIC
CORDES, DISCOVERS A LAKE OF DEATH
DEEP BENEATH THE WAVES
IN THE GULF OF MEXICO.
HIS FINDINGS HITS THE HEADLINES.
OTHER RESEARCH TEAMS SEND
SUBMERSIBLES TO THE OCEAN FLOOR
IN SEARCH OF ANSWERS.
IT IS SUGGESTED THAT MAN-MADE
ACTIVITY IN THE GULF OF MEXICO
MAY BE TO BLAME FOR THIS MARINE DEATH ZONE.
Kays: THIS IS THE GULF OF MEXICO,
AN AREA FAMOUS FOR ITS OIL PRODUCTION,
AND MAYBE THIS IS CONNECTED
WITH THIS POISONOUS LAKE
WE'RE SEEING DOWN HERE.
FOR EXAMPLE, THERE WAS
DEEPWATER HORIZON DISASTER
WHERE MILLIONS OF BARRELS OF
OIL SPILLED OUT OF A BOREHOLE
AND POLLUTED THE OCEAN.
Narrator: DEEPWATER HORIZON
IS THE BIGGEST ACCIDENTAL
OIL SPILLAGE IN HISTORY.
THE OIL RIG EXPLOSION KILLS 11 PEOPLE.
MORE THAN 200 MILLION GALLONS
OF OIL DISCHARGE INTO THE SEA.
THE SPILL DEVASTATES MARINE LIFE,
IMPACTING AN AREA THE SIZE OF OKLAHOMA.
AND A LOT OF THAT OIL IS STILL THERE,
AND IT'S STILL MOVING AROUND,
AND IT'S STILL CAUSING
IMPACTS YEARS AFTER THE EVENT.
WE WERE LOOKING TO SEE IF THERE
WAS EVIDENCE THAT AN OIL SPILL
IMPACTED THE SITES,
AND WE DID FIND DIFFERENT
PLACES IN THE DEEP SEA
WHERE THE OIL WAS PRESENT,
SO IT'S NO INCONCEIVABLE THAT
THAT COULD HAVE BEEN A CAUSE.
Narrator: YET, CORDES HIGHLIGHTS A PROBLEM
WITH THE OIL SPILL THEORY.
OIL USUALLY POISONS, KILLING SLOWLY.
TOXINS TAKE TIME TO ENTER
A BODY AND DO SERIOUS HARM,
BUT ANYTHING ENTERING THIS
LAKE FACES INSTANT OBLIVION.
Cordes: YOU CAN SEE
ANIMALS GET DISORIENTED,
AND THEN DIE VERY QUICKLY.
I'VE WATCHED EEL-LIKE
FISH SWIM INTO THE LAKE,
AND THEY KIND OF GO INTO
DEATH THROES ALMOST INSTANTLY.
VERY RARELY DO THEY ESCAPE ITS GRASP.
Narrator: BIOLOGIST, ROLAND KAYS,
FOCUSES ON THE LIQUID IN THE LAKE.
HE NOTICES IT LOOKS STRANGELY DIFFERENT
FROM THE SURROUNDING WATER.
YOU HAVE TO WONDER,
WHAT'S CREATING THIS LIQUID.
COULD IT BE AN ORGANISM?
COULD IT BE THE BY-PRODUCT OF AN ORGANISM.
Narrator: SOME OF THE WEIRDEST,
MOST TERRIFYING CREATURES
LURK AT THE BOTTOM OF THE OCEAN.
THEY'RE PERFECTLY ADAPTED
TO THRIVE IN, PERHAPS,
THE MOST HOSTILE ENVIRONMENT ON EARTH.
MARINE BIOLOGIST, JON COPLEY,
OF SOUTHAMPTON UNIVERSITY, ENGLAND,
IS A DEEP-SEA SPECIALIST.
HE KNOWS OF ONE INCREDIBLE
CREATURE THAT COULD BE CREATING
A MUCUS-LIKE LIQUID... THE HAGFISH
Copley: THE HAGFISH IS A
GREAT DEEP-SEA SCAVENGER,
AND IT'S A DESCENDANT OF A VERY ANCIENT
AND PRIMITIVE KIND OF FISH.
IT DOESN'T HAVE PROPER JAWS,
AND IT'S ALSO ABLE TO PRODUCE
HUGE AMOUNTS OF SLIME.
Cordes: WHEN THEY FIND A BIG FISH CARCASS
THEY'LL SCRAPE A HOLE IN IT,
AND THEN GO INSIDE AND
EAT IT FORM THE INSIDE OUT,
AND THEY SECRETE THIS
MUCUS THAT COVERS THEIR BODY.
I'VE SEEN ONE OF THESE HAGFISH
FILL A FIVE-GALLON BUCKET FULL OF SLIME
IN ABOUT 15 MINUTES ON THE DECK OF A SHIP.
Narrator: THIS LAKE IS MUCH
LARGER THAN A FIVE-GALLON BUCKET.
CLIMATE SCIENTIST, JOE LACASCE
BELIEVES IF THE LIQUID IS SLIME,
THE AMOUNT IN THE VIDEO
RULES OUT A HAGFISH.
IT WOULD BE SURPRISING IF A FISH,
OR EVEN A SCHOOL OF
FISH, WERE CAUSING THIS.
IT'S TOO MUCH VOLUME FOR THAT.
Narrator: ROLAND KAYS
RETURNS TO THE FOOTAGE.
HE'S PUZZLED BY THE STRANGE
CONTRAST BETWEEN THE LAKE'S EDGE
AND THE LAKE INTERIOR.
HE WONDERS IF THIS ANOMALY
COULD YIELD VITAL CLUES.
ON ONE SIDE YOU HAVE THIS AMAZING,
BEAUTIFUL BIODIVERSITY UNDER THE OCEAN
WITH ALL THESE DIFFERENT ANIMALS,
AND ALL THESE DIFFERENT COLORS,
AND THEN INSIDE IT'S JUST
DEATH AND DESTRUCTION.
THERE'S ALMOST, LIKE, A
WALL MADE OUT OF MUSSELS,
AND AMONGST THE MUSSELS, THERE'S
A LOT OF OTHER ANIMALS, AS WELL.
THERE ARE SHRIMPS.
THERE ARE SOME LITTLE SQUAT
LOBSTERS, CRAB-LIKE ANIMALS.
Narrator: JOE LACASCE SUSPECTS
THIS ABUNDANCE OF LIFE
SO CLOSE TO THE DEATH ZONE
HINTS AT GEOLOGICAL PROCESSES
BENEATH THE OCEAN FLOOR.
Lacasce: SO YOU HAVE
CRACKS IN THE OCEAN BOTTOM,
AND YOU HAVE LEAKAGE OF
HYDROCARBONS, PRIMARILY METHANE.
METHANE IS A FOOD FOR BACTERIA,
SO BACTERIA SCAVENGE METHANE,
AND THE MUSSELS WILL THEN EAT THE BACTERIA.
Narrator: THE ESCAPING METHANE
ISN'T KILLING THE SEA CREATURES,
BUT SOME OTHER
GEOLOGICAL ACTIVITY MIGHT BE.
THE TEAM NEEDS TO
VENTURE INTO THE DEATH ZONE.
CORDES TAKES THE SUB
DOWN TO THE LAKE'S SURFACE
FOR A CLOSER LOOK.
WE JUST SET DOWN.
BUT THERE'S A PROBLEM.
THE SUBMARINE CAN'T
ACTUALLY PENETRATE THROUGH IT,
SO YOU LAND AND YOU'RE
FLOATING ON THIS WATER
AT THE BOTTOM OF THE OCEAN,
AND IT DOESN'T REALLY MAKE ANY SENSE.
Narrator: COMING UP, APOCALYPTIC SKIES WARN
OF TERRIBLE DESTRUCTION
Sella: WHY WOULD EARTHQUAKES CAUSE LIGHTS?
WHAT'S ACTUALLY GOING ON?
Narrator: TOWERING BEAMS OF
LIGHT BRING A CITY TO A STANDSTILL.
YOU ALMOST IMAGINE THAT
THERE'S A SPACESHIP UP THERE.
Narrator: AND SEA CREATURES
FACE AN AGONIZING DEATH
ON THE OCEAN FLOOR.
IF THEY BLUNDER INTO THAT,
THEY INSTANTLY ASPHYXIATE,
AND THEN THEY DIE.
Narrator: A DEADLY LAKE ON THE OCEAN FLOOR
IS BAFFLING SCIENTISTS.
THE FACT THAT WE'VE GOT
THESE TWO WATER BODIES
MEANS THERE MUST BE
SOMETHING DIFFERENT ABOUT THEM.
ONE MUST BE HEAVIER, DENSER THAN THE OTHER,
SUCH THAT WE'VE HAD THIS SEPARATION.
Narrator: GEOLOGIST, REBECCA BELL,
THINKS THERE COULD BE CLUES
IN THE LAKE WATER'S COMPOSITION.
SO ONE POSSIBILITY THAT CAN MAKE
WATER HEAVIER THAN NORMAL WATER
IS IF IT'S GOT LOTS OF
SALT DISSOLVED INTO IT,
IF IT'S BECOME BRINE.
Narrator: PHYSICIST, SIMON FOSTER,
CONSTRUCTS AN EXPERIMENT
TO TEST THE BRINE THEORY.
ON THE RIGHT-HAND SIDE, DYED BLUE,
WE'VE GOT A BODY OF
WATER THAT'S REALLY SALTY,
AND ON THE LEFT-HAND SIDE
WE'VE GOT A CLEAR BODY OF WATER,
AND THAT'S GOT A REALLY
LOW SALT CONCENTRATION.
Narrator: FOSTER'S SETUP
REVEALS WHAT HAPPENS
WHEN THE EXTRA SALTY AND
REGULAR SEA WATER COMBINE.
♪♪
Foster: SO YOU'VE GOT THE
LESS SALTY, LESS DENSE WATER,
SITTING ON TOP,
AND YOU'VE GOT THE DENSER
SALTY WATER STUCK TO THE BOTTOM,
AND THE REASON IS VERY, VERY
SALTY WATER IS A LOT DENSER.
YOU'VE GOT THESE TWO SEPARATE BODIES.
THEY'RE NOT MIXING.
Narrator: REBECCA BELL DEVELOPS A THEORY
FOR HOW THIS SINISTER UNDERWATER
LAKE COULD HAVE FORMED.
IN THE GULF OF MEXICO, IN THE MID-JURASSIC,
THAT WAS 165 MILLION YEARS AGO
WHERE THERE WERE
DINOSAURS WANDERING AROUND,
THIS AREA OF THE WORLD WAS A SHALLOW BASIN.
EVERY NOW AND AGAIN IT
GOT FILLED WITH SALTY WATER.
THAT WATER EVAPORATED
DUE TO THE HEAT OF THE SUN,
AND WE STARTED TO BUILD
UP THIS LAYER OF SALT.
Narrator: THE SALT LAYER
BUILDS UP TO 5,000 FEET THICK.
OVER MILLIONS OF YEARS,
SEDIMENT PILES ON TOP OF THE SALT.
THEN THE OCEANS RE-FLOOD THE AREA.
SO DEEP, DEEP, DEEP BENEATH THE SEA FLOOR
THERE'S ACTUALLY A LAYER OF ROCK SALT
WHERE WE ARE HERE IN THE GULF OF MEXICO.
THAT ROCK SALT IS LIGHTER
THAN ALL THE SEDIMENTS
THAT ARE ABOVE IT, THE OCEAN MUD,
SO IT'S ALWAYS PUSHING ITS WAY UP
TOWARDS THE SURFACE OF THE SEA FLOOR,
AND IN SOME PLACES IT
MAKES IT TO THE SURFACE.
Narrator: WHEN THE SALT
BURSTS THROUGH THE SEDIMENTS
IT DISSOLVES TO FORM A BRINE
LAKE ON THE OCEAN FLOOR.
SO WE END UP WITH HYPERSALINE WATER,
WHICH IS MUCH DENSER THAN
TYPICAL SALTY SEA WATER.
EVENTUALLY, WE MIGHT GET SOME MINERALS
STARTING TO CRYSTALLIZE OUT OF THE BRINE,
WHICH IN THIS CASE SEEMS TO PRODUCE
THESE RIMS TO THE BRINE POOL.
Narrator: JON COPLEY BELIEVES
THIS HYPERSALINITY EXPLAINS
THE MYSTERY OF THE DEAD ZONE.
AS GASES BUBBLE UP THROUGH THE SALT CRUST,
THEY ARE STRIPPED OF OXYGEN.
THERE ARE A LOT OF DEAD
ANIMALS IN THAT BRINE LAKE
BECAUSE THE BRINE, ITSELF,
DOESN'T HAVE OXYGEN IN IT.
WHEN YOU ELIMINATE OXYGEN FROM
A HABITAT YOU'RE GOING TO EXCLUDE
ALMOST EVERY KIND OF
ANIMAL THAT WE KNOW OF.
IF THEY BLUNDER INTO THAT
BRINE THEY INSTANTLY ASPHYXIATE,
AND THEN THEY DIE AND
SINK TO THE BOTTOM OF IT.
Narrator: MARINE CREATURES
ARE LITERALLY DROWNING
IN THESE CREEPY DEEP-SEA LAKES OF DEATH.
♪♪
NOW, A SURVEILLANCE CAMERA
CAPTURES MYSTERIOUS FLASHES
IN THE DEAD OF NIGHT.
YOU GOT LIGHTS APPEARING ALL AROUND YOU.
WHAT ON EARTH WAS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT?
Narrator: MOMENTS LATER, DISASTER STRIKES.
ALL OF A SUDDEN, THE EARTH STARTS SHAKING.
Sella: WHY WOULD EARTHQUAKES CAUSE LIGHTS?
WHAT'S ACTUALLY GOING ON?
Narrator: GUAYAQUIL, THE LARGEST
CITY IN ECUADOR, SOUTH AMERICA.
IT IS THE MAIN CITY FOR COMMERCE,
FOR ENTERTAINMENT, FOR EVERYTHING,
SO IT'S PRETTY MUCH CONSIDERED
A BIG CITY WITHIN SOUTH AMERICA.
Narrator: APRIL 16, 2016, 6:54 P.M.
A SURVEILLANCE CAMERA RECORDS
A SERIES OF UNEXPLAINED LIGHTS
ILLUMINATING THE CITY SKYLINE.
AS I WAS LOOKING OUT AT
THE SKY I SAW SOME LIGHTS,
SOME WHITE AND BRIGHT BLUE LIGHTS.
I FROZE UP. I DIDN'T KNOW WHAT THAT WAS.
Narrator: A DAZZLING LIGHT SHOW IN THE SKY,
OR SOMETHING FAR MORE MENACING.
SOME ARE EVEN APPEARING
DIRECTLY IN THE CENTER OF THE CITY.
WHAT ARE THESE LIGHTS
THAT WE'RE SEEING HERE?
Narrator: AND THEN, DISASTER.
I FELT LIKE THE HOUSES WERE COMING DOWN.
Pablo: I WAS SURE I WAS GOING TO DIE,
AND I'M SURE A LOT OF
PEOPLE FELT THE SAME WAY.
Narrator: THE MAGNITUDE 7.8 EARTHQUAKE
TAKES THE LIVES OF ALMOST 700 PEOPLE.
SOME BELIEVE THE LIGHTS ARE WARNING SIGNS
OF AN IMPENDING DISASTER.
SCIENTISTS EXAMINE THE
SURVEILLANCE FOOTAGE.
MOST BELIEVE ANY CONNECTION
BETWEEN THE STRANGE BURSTS OF LIGHT
AND THE DEVASTATING
EARTHQUAKE IS COINCIDENTAL.
EXPERTS EXPLORE WHAT COULD
REALLY BE TRIGGERING THE PHENOMENON.
PHYSICIST, DAVID WALLACE, OF
MISSISSIPPI STATE UNIVERSITY,
FOCUSES ON THE COLOR OF THE LIGHTS.
HE SUSPECTS ONE OF NATURE'S
MOST SPECTACULAR EVENTS
COULD BE TO BLAME.
THEY ARE A BRIGHT WHITE,
OR A BRIGHT BLUE-ISH COLOR,
WHICH COULD TEND TO LEAD ITSELF
TO BEING AN ELECTRICAL
PHENOMENON OCCURRING.
MY FIRST REACTION WAS
THAT IT LOOKS LIKE LIGHTNING.
Narrator: WALLACE CHECKS
THE ATMOSPHERIC CONDITIONS
IN THE SURVEILLANCE TAPE.
Wallace: IT DOES APPEAR TO
BE A RATHER CLOUDY NIGHT,
SO IT WOULD GIVE PREVALENCE TO LIGHTNING
BEING ABLE TO FORM AND STRIKING.
Narrator: WORLDWIDE,
LIGHTNING FLASHES OCCUR
AROUND 8 MILLION TIMES A DAY.
FIVE TIMES HOTTER THAN
THE SURFACE OF THE SUN,
EACH BOLT RELEASES AROUND
1 BILLION VOLTS OF ELECTRICITY.
PHYSICIST, SCOTT DUBOWSKI,
CONSIDERS IF IT'S POSSIBLE EARTHQUAKES
COULD ALSO GENERATE LIGHTNING.
ANYTHING WHERE YOU HAVE A VERY
LARGE AMOUNT OF STORED ENERGY
THAT CAN BE DISCHARGED IN SOME FORM,
LIGHTNING USUALLY FOLLOWS IT.
Narrator: BUT CLOSER
ANALYSIS OF THE ECUADOR TAPE
REVEALS THESE LIGHT
FLASHES APPEAR TO BEHAVE
DIFFERENTLY FROM MOST LIGHTNING STRIKES.
WHAT I WOULD EXPECT TO SEE IN THE FOOTAGE
IS AT LEAST SOME SORT OF THE
TRADITIONAL THING YOU THINK
ABOUT WITH A LIGHTNING STRIKE,
SOME SORT OF BOLT-LIKE
STRUCTURE FROM CLOUD TO CLOUD,
OR FROM CLOUD TO GROUND.
Narrator: EYEWITNESS ACCOUNTS
SEEM TO SUPPORT THIS.
SO THE QUESTION THEN IS WHAT IS THIS?
Narrator: COMING UP, GHOSTLY BEAMS OF LIGHT
APPEAR IN THE NIGHT SKY OVER OSLO, NORWAY.
IS IT EXTRATERRESTRIAL?
IS IT SOME SORT OF GOVERNMENT THING
TO CONTACT PEOPLE IN SPACE?
Narrator: AND SCIENTISTS RACE TO EXPLAIN
ONE OF THE STRANGEST PHENOMENA ON EARTH.
Sella: WE'RE TALKING ABOUT
ENORMOUS PRESSURES TAKING PLACE,
AND THAT MIGHT GENERATE
THOSE EXTRAORDINARY FLASHES.
Narrator: SCIENTISTS ARE
BAFFLED BY THE WEIRD LIGHTS
CAPTURED ON SURVEILLANCE CAMERA
MOMENTS BEFORE A DEADLY EARTHQUAKE.
THEY CONSIDER WHETHER THE
CITY'S ELECTRICAL POWER SUPPLY
TRIGGERS THE FLASHES.
IF YOU HAVE AN EARTHQUAKE
YOU COULD CAUSE GENERATORS
TO BLOW AND ELECTRICITY CABLES TO COLLAPSE,
AND THAT ALSO CAN PRODUCE LIGHTS.
Narrator: BUT LOCAL SCIENTISTS
ARGUE THAT BUILT-IN SAFEGUARDS
MAKE THIS IDEA UNLIKELY.
GEOLOGIST, REBECCA BELL,
NOTICES THAT THE TIME STAMP
ON THE SURVEILLANCE FOOTAGE
RULES OUT A POWER-GRID EXPLOSION.
THOSE FLASHES OF LIGHT OCCURRED TWO MINUTES
BEFORE THAT EARTHQUAKE HIT.
THERE'S NOTHING THAT I CAN THINK
OF THAT WOULD CAUSE TRANSFORMERS
TO BLOW BEFORE THE EARTHQUAKE
TORE APART THE POWER GRID.
Narrator: A REVIEW OF
HISTORICAL RECORDS REVEALS
THAT THIS ISN'T THE FIRST TIME
PEOPLE HAVE WITNESSED STRANGE LIGHTS
BEFORE AN EARTHQUAKE.
THERE HAVE BEEN REPORTS OF LIGHTS
ASSOCIATED WITH EARTHQUAKES FOR CENTURIES.
BUT THERE HASN'T BEEN CONFIRMED SIGHTINGS
OF THESE EARTHQUAKE LIGHTS.
Narrator: SOME GEOLOGISTS BELIEVE
THE GUAYAQUIL SURVEILLANCE
TAPE COULD BE A SMOKING GUN,
EVIDENCE THAT EARTHQUAKES
DO GENERATE LIGHTS.
SCIENTISTS CONSIDER HOW.
ANDREAS SELLA IS A CHEMIST
AT UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON.
HE PROPOSES EARTHQUAKES RELEASE
SUCH MASSIVE AMOUNTS OF ENERGY
THAT SOME FORM OF
ELECTRICAL CHARGE IS POSSIBLE.
Sella: WE'RE TALKING ABOUT
MILLIONS, IF NOT BILLIONS,
OF TONS, ENORMOUS PRESSURES TAKING PLACE.
Narrator: SELLA SETS UP A
LABORATORY-LEVEL VERSION
OF TECTONIC PLATES COLLIDING
DURING AN EARTHQUAKE.
WHAT I HAVE HERE ARE
TWO LUMPS OF ROSE QUARTZ,
AND WHAT I'M GOING TO DO IS I'M
GOING TO STRIKE THEM TOGETHER,
AND YOU NEED TO LOOK VERY,
VERY CLOSELY AT THE ROCK.
IF THE THEORY IS RIGHT, HE EXPECTS TO SEE
AN ELECTRICAL DISCHARGE
AROUND THE IMPACT POINT.
THERE ARE TINY, LITTLE FLASHES
ON THE EDGE JUST AT THE POINT
WHERE THE TWO ROCKS STRIKE EACH OTHER.
THIS ISN'T SIMPLY DOWN TO FRICTION.
Narrator: SELLA BELIEVES THE IMPACT MUST BE
CHARGING THE ATOMS IN THE ROCKS.
WHEN WE ACTUALLY STRIKE
THE TWO ROCKS TOGETHER,
A SHOCK WAVE TRAVELS THROUGH THE MATERIAL,
WHICH SHIFTS THE RELATIVE
POSITIONS OF THE ATOMS,
AND IN DOING SO, THE ROCK
BECOMES PARTIALLY ELECTRIFIED.
Narrator: COULD THIS EFFECT,
SCALED UP A THOUSANDFOLD,
EXPLAIN THE MYSTERY LIGHTS?
Sella: WHAT IF WE TAKE HUGE LAND MASSES
AND START PRESSING THEM TOGETHER,
AND RELEASING THAT PRESSURE
AS PART OF AN EARTHQUAKE?
AND THAT MIGHT GENERATE
THOSE EXTRAORDINARY FLASHES
WE SEE ON THE HORIZON.
Narrator: SELLA'S EXPERIMENT
SHOWS THAT CRYSTALLINE ROCKS
LIKE QUARTZ CAN GENERATE SPARKS,
BUT GEOLOGICAL SURVEYS OF THE
EARTHQUAKE EPICENTER IN ECUADOR
REVEAL A PROBLEM.
THE GEOLOGY OF THIS AREA IN ECUADOR
IS DOMINATED BY SEDIMENTARY ROCKS,
WHICH DON'T HAVE THE
SAME CRYSTAL STRUCTURE.
Narrator: SCIENTISTS ARE STILL
SEARCHING FOR AN ANSWER
TO THE MYSTERY OF THESE BIZARRE LIGHTS.
EARTHQUAKE LIGHTS ARE ONE OF THE
GREAT CHALLENGES OF GEOPHYSICS.
AS YOU STRIP AWAY THE
LAYERS OF THE OBVIOUS,
WHAT YOU'RE GONNA BE
LEFT WITH IS AN UNUSUAL,
AND SO FAR, UNEXPLAINED PHENOMENON.
♪♪
Narrator: NOW, GHOSTLY
COLUMNS OF LIGHT TOWER ABOVE
NORWAY'S CAPITAL CITY.
IT'S ABSOLUTELY SPECTACULAR.
I'VE NEVER SEEN ANYTHING QUITE LIKE THAT.
IT LOOKS SUPERNATURAL IN SOME KIND OF WAY.
Narrator: SOME FEAR AN ALIEN INVASION.
YOU ALMOST IMAGINE THAT
THERE'S A SPACESHIP UP THERE.
IT'S UNIDENTIFIED OBJECT.
♪♪
Narrator: OSLO, NORWAY... JANUARY, 2016.
IT'S AN ICY MIDWINTER NIGHT.
LOCAL PHOTOGRAPHER, CHRIS-HAVARD BERGE,
TAKES IN THE VIEW.
I WAS JUST LOOKING OUT THE WINDOW,
AND THEN I SAW SOME STRANGE,
UNIQUE LIGHT ON THE SKY
IN DIFFERENT COLORS
LIKE BLUE AND A BIT YELLOW.
IT LOOKED SUPERNATURAL IN SOME KIND OF WAY.
I GRABBED MY CAMERA AND MY TRIPOD
AND WENT OUT TO TRY TO SEE IF
I COULD GET SOME PHOTOS OF IT,
AND I FIRED UP THE TIME-LAPSE.
I THOUGHT, "WOW. SOMETHING
STRANGE IS GOING ON."
IT WAS MOVING, LIKE, UP AND DOWN.
I WAS WONDERING WHAT
WOULD MAKE THIS HAPPEN.
Narrator: CHRIS-HAVARD POSTS HIS PICTURES
OF THE OTHERWORLDLY LIGHT BEAMS ONLINE.
THE FOOTAGE GOES VIRAL.
IT WAS REALLY COOL TO SEE THAT
THIS WAS QUITE A UNIQUE CAPTURE.
Narrator: HIS IMAGES SEND THE
INTERNET INTO A FRENZY OF SPECULATION.
SOME BELIEVE ALIEN INVADERS
ARE POISED TO ATTACK.
YOU ALMOST IMAGINE THAT
THERE'S A SPACESHIP UP THERE
BECAUSE OF THE VERTICALNESS OF
THE LIGHT COMING DOWN THAT WAY.
IT LOOKS SO STRANGE. I
MEAN, IS IT EXTRATERRESTRIAL?
IS IT SOME SORT OF GOVERNMENT THING
TO CONTACT PEOPLE IN SPACE?
♪♪
Narrator: OSLO RESIDENTS FEAR
THAT GHOSTLY COLUMNS OF LIGHT
ILLUMINATING THE NORWEGIAN CITY
COULD BE A SIGN OF AN ALIEN INVASION.
EXPERTS SUSPECT THE SPECTACULAR LIGHT SHOW
ORIGINATES CLOSER TO HOME.
SO YOU MIGHT THINK THAT THERE
WAS A HEAVENLY EXPLANATION
FOR IT.
Narrator: ANALYSTS
CONSIDER IF THE TIME OF YEAR
MAY BE SIGNIFICANT.
EERIE LIGHT SHOWS ARE A REGULAR
FEATURE OF THE WINTER SKIES
IN OSLO.
QUITE OFTEN, ACTUALLY, THE NORTHERN LIGHTS
IS VISIBLE IN OSLO.
THIS WINTER IT WAS
VISIBLE MAYBE 10, 12 TIMES.
Narrator: THE NORTHERN LIGHTS
OF AURORA BOREALIS FORM
WHEN THE SUN EJECTS SOLAR WINDS
THAT TRAVEL AT A MILLION MILES AN HOUR.
THE CHARGED PARTICLES WITHIN THE WINDS
HIT THE EARTH'S ATMOSPHERE.
ACTUALLY, MOVING DOWN TOWARDS THE EARTH
THEY WILL EVENTUALLY
ALIGN WITH THE ATMOSPHERE,
AND THEY WILL TRANSFER
SOME ENERGY TO THESE ATOMS,
AND THEY GET EXCITED.
Narrator: THE ENERGY IS RELEASED
IN THE FORM OF COLORED LIGHTS,
THE AURORA.
PHYSICIST, GABBY PROVAN,
FOCUSES IN ON THE COLORS
THAT MAKE UP THE MYSTERY SHAFTS OF LIGHT.
SHE SPOTS A SIMILARITY
WITH THE NORTHERN LIGHTS.
Provan: YOU CAN GET AURORAS ALMOST A, LIKE,
A WHITE, LIGHT-GREEN COLOR,
AND THERE WAS A WHITE
LIGHT THERE IN THE MIDDLE
THAT LOOKS SIMILAR TO THE AURORA.
Narrator: BUT CLOSER
INSPECTION OF THE FOOTAGE
REVEALS SOMETHING ABOUT THE
SHAPE OF THE MYSTERY COLUMNS
THAT RULES OUT THE NORTHERN LIGHTS.
Gay: WITH THE AURORA
BOREALIS WE SEE THE MOVEMENT,
WE SEE THE DANCE,
AND WE DON'T SEE THESE
PERFECTLY STRAIGHT LINES
THAT VARY WITH THE BLOWING WIND.
♪♪
Narrator: EXPERTS SWITCH THEIR
SEARCH TO TERRESTRIAL POSSIBILITIES.
Provan: IT ALMOST LOOKS LIKE
SOMEONE SWITCHED ON A FLOODLIGHT
AND POINTED IT RIGHT UP IN THE SKY.
IT REMINDS ME OF WHEN YOU GO
TO A ROCK CONCERT OR SOMETHING,
THAT THEY'RE PUTTING ON THESE LIGHT SHOWS
FOR THE CONCERT
BECAUSE THERE ARE SO MANY COLORS.
Narrator: A CHECK OF THE RECORDS
CONFIRMS THERE ARE NO FLOODLIT CONCERTS
ON THE NIGHT OF THE GHOSTLY LIGHTS.
♪♪
METEOROLOGIST, HELENE
MURI, FROM OSLO UNIVERSITY,
STUDIES THE IMAGES.
SHE SUSPECTS THE WEATHER MAY PLAY A ROLE
IN PRODUCING THE LASER-LIKE LIGHT SHOW.
YOU CAN SEE THAT THERE
ARE SOME MID-LEVEL CLOUDS,
AND ALSO SOME HIGH-LEVEL CLOUDS THERE,
AND THESE HIGH-LEVEL CLOUDS, IN PARTICULAR,
WOULD BE MADE OUT OF ICE.
Narrator: MURI BELIEVES
THE HIGH-LEVEL CLOUDS
ARE A SIGN THAT CONDITIONS ARE
COLD ENOUGH FOR ICE CRYSTALS
TO FORM IN THE LOWER ATMOSPHERE.
IT HAS TO BE BELOW FREEZING, MINUS-5,
AND DOWN TO, SORT OF, MINUS-40,
SO YOU NEED IT TO BE JUST COLD ENOUGH,
AND JUST RIGHT THE LEVEL OF
HUMIDITY TO FORM ICE CRYSTALS.
Narrator: CLIMATE SCIENTIST, JOE LACASCE,
BELIEVES THE ICE CRYSTAL STRUCTURE
IS CRUCIAL TO CREATING
THIS SPOOKY PHENOMENON.
Lacasce: THESE ICE PARTICLES
TEND TO HAVE A HEXAGONAL SHAPE,
AND THEY TEND TO BE FLAT,
SO THEY'RE LIKE THESE LITTLE MIRRORS.
AND THEY WOULD SORT OF HOVER, SO TO SAY,
AND BE SUSPENDED IN THE AIR.
Narrator: HELEN MURI SEARCHES
FOR THE TYPE OF LIGHT
THAT CAN CREATE THIS EFFECT.
IF YOU HAVE A LIGHT SOURCE FROM
THE GROUND, SAY STREET LAMPS,
OR WHATEVER, HITTING THE
SMALL ICE CRYSTALS FROM BELOW,
THEY ACT AS A MIRROR TO
GET REFRACTION OF THE LIGHT.
WHAT YOU'RE SEEING WITH A LIGHT PILLAR
IS THE, BASICALLY, REFLECTION OF LIGHT.
IT'S LIGHT FROM ANOTHER
SOURCE THAT'S BEING REFLECTED
OFF THESE ICE PARTICLES TOWARDS YOU.
Narrator: HELEN MURI
CONFIRMS CHRIS-HAVARD IMAGES
BE A STUNNING EXAMPLE
OF A RARELY SEEN EVENT.
YOU WOULD BE QUITE LUCKY
TO GET THE OPPORTUNITY
TO SEE AND FILM THIS
BECAUSE THEY ARE SO RARE.
IT'S RARE THAT YOU GET ENOUGH HUMIDITY
AND COLD ENOUGH
TEMPERATURES AT THE SAME TIME.
Berge: IT WAS AMAZING JUST TO WATCH IT.
YOU SHOULD HAVE BEEN THERE.
Narrator: OSLO CITIZENS CAN REST EASY.
THE TOWERING COLUMNS OF
LIGHT LOOMING OVER THEIR CITY
ARE NOT AN ALIEN INVASION... THIS TIME.
MILLION SURVEILLANCE CAMERAS
ARE WATCHING US.
ON OUR STREETS, AT WORK, AND IN OUR HOMES,
THEY CAPTURE THINGS THAT SEEM IMPOSSIBLE.
IT DEFIES THE LAWS OF PHYSICS.
Man: THIS IS UNBELIEVABLE, MAN.
Narrator: EXPERTS CARRY
OUT FORENSIC ANALYSIS
OF THESE UNUSUAL EVENTS.
THERE'S GOT TO BE SOME
EXPLANATION FOR WHAT'S GOING ON.
[ SCREAMS ]
Narrator: COMING UP...
INFRARED CAMERAS TRACK A MYSTERIOUS OBJECT
IN THE CHILEAN SKIES...
WE HAVE A GENUINE U.F.O.
AND IT SEEMS TO BE EXPELLING
SOMETHING INTO THE AIR.
Narrator: ...A DEEP-SEA DIVE PLUNGES INTO
AN UNDERWATER LAKE OF DEATH...
Cordes: IT WAS SURPRISING TO
SEE A LOT OF THESE DEAD ANIMALS.
AND IT DOESN'T REALLY MAKE ANY SENSE.
Narrator: ...GHOSTLY COLUMNS OF
LIGHT BEAM DOWN FROM THE HEAVENS...
WHAT IT IS? IT'S JUST SO UNUSUAL.
Narrator: ...AND SURVEILLANCE
CAMERAS CAPTURE
APOCALYPTIC SKIES AS
AN EARTHQUAKE STRIKES...
WHY WOULD EARTHQUAKES CAUSE
LIGHT? WHAT'S ACTUALLY GOING ON?
Narrator: BIZARRE PHENOMENA...
...MYSTERIES CAUGHT ON SURVEILLANCE...
WHAT'S THE TRUTH BEHIND
THIS STRANGE EVIDENCE?
A MILITARY HELICOPTER
SPOTS A STRANGE OBJECT
EMITTING AN OMINOUS-LOOKING PLUME.
IT LOOKS LIKE SPILLED INK ACROSS THE SKY.
Narrator: THE MYSTERY
CRAFT IS INVISIBLE TO RADAR.
MAYBE THERE'S SOME
SORT OF STEALTH AIRCRAFT.
IF YOU SOMETHING THAT'S UNIDENTIFIED FLYING
IN YOUR AIRSPACE,
YOU NEED TO FIGURE OUT WHAT IT IS.
THE FOOTAGE REALLY DOES
MAKE ME THINK OF U.F.O.s.
♪♪
Narrator: SANTIAGO, CHILE
...NOVEMBER 11, 2014.
A CHILEAN NAVY HELICOPTER PATROLS THE SKIES
ON A ROUTINE DAYTIME MISSION.
ONBOARD, THE CAPTAIN
AND A NAVAL TECHNICIAN.
HIS JOB... TO RUN TESTS
ON A NEW STATE-OF-THE-ART
INFRARED CAMERA SYSTEM.
THIS MILITARY HELICOPTER IS MADE
TO SPOT THINGS ON THE GROUND.
IT IS LOOKING FOR TARGETS ON THE LAND,
ANYTHING MAN-MADE THAT GIVES
OUT A DIFFERENT THERMAL SIGNATURE.
Narrator: 1:52 P.M., THE
CHOPPER FLIES TO 4,500 FEET
AT 150 MILES AN HOUR.
OUT OF A CLOUDLESS SKY, THEY
SPOT A STRANGE FLYING OBJECT.
THE TECHNICIAN SWITCHES
ON THE INFRARED CAMERA
TO GET A BETTER IMAGE.
YOU SEE A BLACK BLOB THAT SEEMS TO BE,
MAYBE, ALMOST, OVAL-SHAPED,
AND YOU ALSO SEE THAT
IT SEEMS TO ALMOST HAVE
A LITTLE BIT OF A HALO AROUND IT.
Narrator: THE PILOT ESTIMATES THE OBJECT
IS TRAVELING AT THE SAME ALTITUDE
AS THE CHOPPER, AROUND 35 TO 40 MILES AWAY,
CLOSE ENOUGH TO POSE A THREAT.
THE CREW'S MILITARY TRAINING KICKS IN.
BUT THERE WAS NO RESPONSE,
WHICH RATHER DEEPENS THE MYSTERY.
Narrator: STRANGER STILL, THE ONBOARD RADAR
IS UNABLE TO DETECT THE OBJECT.
♪♪
[ MAN SPEAKING SPANISH ]
THE PILOT CHECKS WITH AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL
AT SANTIAGO AIRPORT 35 MILES AWAY.
THEY GET BACK TO THEM.
THEY DON'T SEE ANYTHING IN
THE AIRSPACE THAT HE DESCRIBED.
IT MAKES YOU WONDER, WHAT COULD IT BE?
WHAT HAS THOSE PROPERTIES
OF BEING VISIBLE ON INFRARED,
BUT NO VISIBLE ON RADAR.
Narrator: THE MILITARY CHOPPER'S
CAMERA PICKS UP ANYTHING
WITH A HEAT SIGNAL.
THE HOTTER THE OBJECT, THE
DARKER IT APPEARS ON SCREEN.
EIGHT MINUTES INTO THIS STRANGE ENCOUNTER,
THE INFRARED CAMERA
RECORDS THE UNIDENTIFIED CRAFT
EJECTING A THICK PLUME.
WHATEVER IT IS, THE PLUME
IS REGISTERING INTENSE HEAT.
THE PILOT HAS NO IDEA WHAT
LEVEL OF THREAT HE'S FACING.
IF YOU HAVE SOMETHING
THAT'S UNIDENTIFIED FLYING
IN YOUR AIRSPACE,
YOU NEED TO FIGURE OUT WHAT IT IS.
Narrator: THE CREW TRACKS THE
STRANGE OBJECT FOR NINE MINUTES,
BUT A CRITICALLY LOW FUEL SUPPLY
FORCES THEM TO RETURN TO BASE.
THE ENCOUNTER IS SO ALARMING
THE PILOT'S REPORT GOES STRAIGHT
TO THE CHILEAN GOVERNMENT
AGENCY INVESTIGATING U.F.O.s.
THEY ANALYZE THE TAPE.
THEY GET ALL SPUN UP, PUT
AN INVESTIGATION TOGETHER,
AND START REALLY TRYING TO
DETERMINE WHAT THE IMAGE SHOWS,
AND WHAT IS GOING ON IN THEIR AIRSPACE.
Narrator: YET, AFTER TWO
YEARS THEY DRAW A BLANK.
IN DESPERATION, THE CHILEAN GOVERNMENT
RELEASES THE FOOTAGE ONLINE.
CONSPIRACY THEORIES FLOOD THE INTERNET.
WHAT IS BEYOND DISPUTE IS
THAT THERE IS SOMETHING FLYING
IN THE AIR THAT IS A DIFFERENT TEMPERATURE
THAN THE AIR AROUND IT,
AND IT SEEMS TO BE EXPELLING
SOMETHING INTO THE AIR.
Narrator: ANALYSTS CONSIDER
HOW THE OBJECT CAN
BE INVISIBLE TO RADAR.
MAYBE THERE'S SOME SORT OF STEALTH AIRCRAFT
INVOLVED IN THE INCIDENT.
NOW, A STEALTH AIRCRAFT IS
ONE THAT'S MADE TO EVADE RADAR.
THE SHAPE OF THE AIRCRAFT,
THE MATERIALS THAT IT USES,
IT'S ALL BEING DONE TO
BAFFLE A RADAR RETURN.
Narrator: BUT A STEALTH CRAFT
DOESN'T USUALLY SHOW UP IN INFRARED
OR EMIT A VISIBLE PLUME.
SO THE IDEA THAT IT'S A STEALTH AIRCRAFT
THAT CAN'T BE SEEN ON RADAR,
BUT HAS SUCH A BIG INFRARED SIGNATURE,
CASTS SOME DOUBT ON THAT THEORY ENTIRELY.
Narrator: ROBERT FISHER OF
EDINBURGH UNIVERSITY, SCOTLAND,
IS AN EXPERT IN OPTICAL PHENOMENA.
HE SUSPECTS THE INFRARED
IMAGE COULD BE DISGUISING
A MORE FAMILIAR OBJECT.
I THINK WHAT WE'RE
LOOKING AT IS, POTENTIALLY,
A PASSENGER PLANE,
KIND OF, JUST MOVING AWAY FROM US.
IT'S GOT IT'S FOUR JET ENGINES.
IT'S PUTTING OUT LOTS OF HEAT.
Narrator: THE PROBLEM IS THAT
THE FEATURELESS BLACK BLOB
ON THE INFRARED FOOTAGE
DOESN'T LOOK ANYTHING
LIKE A REGULAR AIRPLANE.
FISHER CONSTRUCTS AN
EXPERIMENT TO TEST HIS THEORY.
NOW, WHAT THESE CANDLES
ARE GOING TO REPRESENT
ARE THE FOUR HEAT SIGNATURES
FROM THE FOUR ENGINES,
AND IF MY THEORY IS CORRECT,
AS WE MOVE AWAY FROM
OUR SIMULATED AIRPLANE,
HERE, WE SHOULD SEE
THAT THE HEAT SIGNATURES
OF THESE FOUR ENGINES
MERGE INTO JUST A SINGLE BLOB.
YOU CAN SEE THAT THEY'RE SORT OF
MERGING DOWN TO ABOUT TWO BLOBS,
AND AS I GET A BIT FURTHER
BACK, AS YOU CAN SEE, REALLY,
WE'VE JUST GOT ON BLOB,
ONE DARK BLOB REPRESENTING
THE FOUR VERY BRIGHT LIGHTS
NOW MERGED TOGETHER.
THE BLOB THAT YOU SEE IN
THE VIDEO COULD REALLY BE
JUST THE HEAT SIGNATURES
FROM THE FOUR JET ENGINES OF AN AIRPLANE
TAKEN AT QUITE A DISTANCE,
AND ALL MERGED DOWN JUST
LIKE I'VE DONE RIGHT HERE.
Narrator: IF ROBERT FISHER IS
CORRECT AND THIS IS A PLANE,
THEN HIS THEORY MAY ALSO SOLVE THE MYSTERY
OF THE TRAILING PLUME.
IT COULD BE JUST A
REGULAR, EVERYDAY AIRPLANE
THAT WE SAW ITS CONTRAILS
POINTING OFF TO THE SIDE.
Narrator: CONTRAILS ARE THIN, LINEAR CLOUDS
CREATED BY AIRCRAFT ENGINE EXHAUSTS.
WATER VAPOR WITHIN THE EXHAUST FREEZES,
LEAVING AN ICY TRAIL ACROSS THE SKY.
YET, THERE'S AN IMMEDIATE PROBLEM,
AN ANOMALY THAT THROWS THE
AIRCRAFT THEORY INTO DOUBT.
THE MILITARY CHOPPER'S INFRARED IMAGE
REGISTERS A CLEAR HEAT SIGNATURE
ON THE MYSTERY CRAFT'S TRAIL.
NORMALLY, CONTRAILS ARE BELOW FREEZING,
AND YET THIS LOOKS AS THOUGH IT'S HOT.
THAT DOESN'T MAKE ANY SENSE TO ME.
Narrator: COMING UP, A
MASSACRE BENEATH THE WAVES...
DEAD ANIMALS. I HAD NEVER
SEEN ANYTHING LIKE THAT BEFORE.
Narrator: ...A CLOSE ENCOUNTER
WITH MYSTERIOUS LIGHTS
FROM THE HEAVENS...
YOU ALMOST IMAGINE THAT
THERE'S A SPACESHIP UP THERE.
Narrator: ...AND INVESTIGATORS
DISCOVER WHY THE CHILEAN UFO
HAS GONE SILENT.
Walters: A PILOT SHOULD
RESPOND TO ALL RADIO CALLS,
ESPECIALLY FROM A MILITARY HELICOPTER.
THAT CAN BE FATAL IF YOU IGNORE IT.
Narrator: EXPERTS SUSPECT
AN UNIDENTIFIED OBJECT
CAPTURED BY A CHILEAN MILITARY HELICOPTER
MAY SIMPLY BE A REGULAR AIRPLANE,
BUT THEY'RE BAFFLED AS TO HOW
THE CRAFT'S FREEZING COLD CONTRAIL
SHOWS UP AS SUPER-HEATED
ON THE INFRARED IMAGE.
AVIATION SPECIALIST, MICK WEST,
THINKS THE HEAT DETECTION
SENSORS ON THE CAMERA
MAY BE MASKING THE TRUTH,
AND THAT THE PROBLEM LIES WITH THE CAMERA
USING THE COLD SKY AS ITS REFERENCE POINT.
THE TEMPERATURE OF THE
SKY ON INFRARED FOOTAGE
SHOWS UP AS BEING VERY, VERY COLD,
WELL BELOW THE FREEZING POINT OF WATER,
SO EVEN THINGS LIKE ICE,
EVEN THINGS LIKE CONTRAILS,
ACTUALLY SHOW UP AS BEING HOT.
Narrator: YET, CONTRAILS
USUALLY FORM ABOVE 30,000 FEET.
MICK WEST BELIEVES THAT THIS
IS A SPECIAL KIND OF CONTRAIL
VISIBLE AT LOWER ALTITUDES.
THIS TYPE OF CONTRAIL IS ONE
CALLED AN AERODYNAMIC CONTRAIL,
WHICH FORMS AT MUCH LOWER ALTITUDES
THAN REGULAR CONTRAILS,
LIKE AROUND 15,000 TO 25,000 FEET.
THE PROBLEM WITH THIS THEORY IS
THAT THE HELICOPTER HAS REPORTED
THE ALTITUDE OF BOTH THE HELICOPTER
AND THE OBJECT AS BEING 4,500 FEET.
NOW, THIS IS WAY TOO
LOW TO FORM A CONTRAIL.
Narrator: ROBERT FISHER
BELIEVES HE HAS AN ANSWER.
HE THINKS THE PILOTS MAY HAVE
MISJUDGED THE CRAFT'S ALTITUDE.
IT'S VERY DIFFICULT TO WORK
OUT BY EYE OUT FAR AWAY
SOMETHING IS JUST BY LOOKING AT IT.
EVEN THE MOST EXPERIENCED
CREW CAN HAVE SOME DIFFICULTIES.
YOU REALLY NEED SOME
KIND OF A REFERENCE POINT,
BUT HERE WE DON'T HAVE ANYTHING.
WE JUST HAVE OPEN SKY EVERYWHERE.
Narrator: IF THE CRAFT IS
FLYING AT A HIGHER ALTITUDE,
THEN INVESTIGATORS MAY HAVE
BEEN LOOKING IN THE WRONG PLACE
FOR AN ANSWER.
MICK WEST REEXAMINES
COMMERCIAL AIRCRAFT FLIGHT DATA
WITHIN 50 MILES OF THE NAVY CHOPPER.
HE IDENTIFIES AN AIRCRAFT
FLYING OUT OF SANTIAGO AIRPORT
AT EXACTLY THE TIME OF
THE CHILEAN CHOPPER'S
MYSTERY ENCOUNTER.
FURTHER CHECKS CONFIRM
IT IS A FOUR-ENGINE PLANE
HEADING TO MADRID, SPAIN.
WE SPOTTED ONE THAT
FOLLOWED, VISUALLY, THE SAME PATH
THAT WAS TRACED OUT BY THIS OBJECT.
Narrator: WEST SUSPECTS
THE AIRCRAFT'S TRUE POSITION
MAY OFFER AN EXPLANATION
FOR WHY IT DOESN'T SHOW
UP ON THE HELICOPTER RADAR.
AT THE END OF THE VIDEO THE
OBJECT IS ACTUALLY AROUND
200 MILES AWAY FROM THEM.
SO BECAUSE THEY WERE
ONLY LOOKING FOR THINGS
THAT WERE NEARBY,
THEY DIDN'T FIND THE ACTUAL OBJECT.
THEY SHOULD HAVE
LOOKED A LITTLE BIT FURTHER.
♪♪
Narrator: BUT THE MYSTERY OF
WHY THE JET FAILS TO RESPOND
TO CALLS FROM THE
MILITARY HELICOPTER REMAINS.
A PILOT SHOULD RESPOND TO ALL
RADIO CALLS DIRECTED AT THEM,
ESPECIALLY FROM A MILITARY HELICOPTER.
THAT CAN BE FATAL IF YOU IGNORE IT.
Narrator: MICK WEST BELIEVES
THE COMMERCIAL AIRCRAFT CREW
IS SIMPLY FOLLOWING
STANDARD AVIATION PROTOCOLS.
West: BECAUSE THIS WAS A PLANE
THAT WAS DEPARTING THE AIRPORT,
IT WOULD HAVE BEEN IN CONTACT
WITH THE DEPARTURE CONTROL
FOR SANTIAGO AIRPORT.
IT WOULD HAVE BEEN TALKING TO THEM,
AND SO IT WOULDN'T HAVE
HEARD THE HELICOPTER
TRYING TO HAIL IT ON THE OPEN FREQUENCY.
Narrator: WEST BELIEVES EVIDENCE
POINTS TO THE MYSTERY CRAFT
BEING A REGULAR COMMERCIAL AIRCRAFT,
BUT FOR THE CHILEAN GOVERNMENT,
IT REMAINS AN UNIDENTIFIED
AERIAL PHENOMENON.
CONSIDERING THEIR MANY RESOURCES,
IF THEY AREN'T ABLE TO IDENTIFY WHAT IT IS,
IT REALLY MAKES US WONDER
WILL WE EVER BE ABLE TO KNOW.
♪♪
Narrator: NEXT, A DEEP-SEA
DIVING CRAFT CAPTURES IMAGES
OF A MACABRE UNDERWATER GRAVEYARD.
I HAD NEVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE THAT BEFORE.
Narrator: A DEADLY AMBUSH
AWAITS ON THE OCEAN FLOOR.
Kays: THIS IS WHERE SEA LIFE GOES TO DIE,
THE EERIEST UNDERWATER
KINGDOM IN THE DARKEST DEPTHS.
♪♪
Narrator: THE GULF OF
MEXICO... MAY 8, 2014.
BIOLOGIST, ERIC CORDES,
AND HIS TEAM OF RESEARCHERS
PILOT THEIR SUBMERSIBLE
3,000 FEET DOWN INTO THE ABYSS.
MY FAVORITE THING ABOUT MY
JOB IS BEING ABLE TO GO PLACES
THAT NO ONE HAS EVER BEEN.
Narrator: CORDES' MISSION
...TO CAPTURE IMAGES
OF RARELY SEEN DEEP-SEA CREATURES.
THE TEAM HOPES TO FIND NEW SPECIES
IN THE DARKEST DEPTHS OF THE OCEAN.
IT'S LIKE A BIG FISH BOWL,
EXCEPT YOU'RE IN THE INSIDE,
AND YOU CAN SEE OUT.
YOU CAN SEE, YOU KNOW, RIGHT
PAST YOUR FEET TO THE SEA FLOOR.
YOU CAN SEE THE SURFACE
WHEN YOU'RE COMING DOWN,
ALL THE BIOLUMINESCENCE ALL AROUND YOU.
Narrator: CORDES PILOTS THE SUB
DOWN TOWARDS THE OCEAN FLOOR.
THEY REACH 4,000 FEET.
YEAH, SEAN.
WE'RE GOING TO START DRIVING
TOWARDS TARGET TWO AND THREE.
THE SUN'S LIGHT CAN'T REACH THIS FAR DOWN.
THE SUBMERSIBLE'S LIGHTS ARE THE ONLY THING
PIERCING THE DARKNESS.
OUT OF NOWHERE, CORDES
SPOTS SOMETHING ALARMING.
Cordes: DEAD ANIMALS.
I HAD NEVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE THAT BEFORE.
Narrator: CORDES HAS STUMBLED
UPON WHAT BIOLOGISTS CALL
A DEAD ZONE.
YOU SEE DEAD CRABS. YOU SEE
THIS SORT OF BLUE-GRAY COLOR.
Man: THESE LARGER ORGANISMS
REALLY DON'T LIKE TO BE IN THIS FLUID.
MAYBE THEY JUST COME HERE TO DIE.
THERE ARE QUITE A FEW
DEAD ANIMALS WE CAN SEE.
YOU KNOW, CRABS LYING ON THEIR BACK.
WE CAN SEE SHRIMP-LIKE ANIMALS
THAT HAVE OBVIOUSLY EXPIRED.
Narrator: THE SERIES OF UNEXPLAINED DEATHS
APPEARS TO BE RANDOM,
BUT CLOSER INSPECTION OF THE
FOOTAGE REVEALS A POSSIBLE CLUE.
THE DEAD CREATURES ARE
CONTAINED IN ONE AREA.
YOU HAVE THIS STRANGE VERTICAL CONTAINER,
THIS TUB, SITTING DOWN THERE,
AND THEN INSIDE THE TUB IS A MURKY WATER,
SORT OF A VERY DILUTE
MILK-LOOKING SUBSTANCE.
Narrator: IT'S A DEADLY LAKE
BIZARRELY DEEP BENEATH THE SEA.
IT SITS ON THE SEA BED.
IT DOESN'T FLOAT UP AND KIND
OF MIX WITH THE OCEAN ABOVE.
IT SITS THERE LIKE A
LAKE ON THE OCEAN FLOOR.
YOU SEE THIS BLUE LAKE,
AND THEN YOU REALIZE,
WAIT A SECOND, WE'RE ALREADY UNDERWATER.
HOW IS THERE A LAKE UNDERWATER?
Narrator: COMING UP,
WEIRD LIGHTS IN THE SKY
FORETELL A MASSIVE EARTHQUAKE IN ECUADOR.
Pablo: I WAS SURE I WAS GOING TO DIE,
AND I'M SURE A LOT OF
PEOPLE FELT THE SAME WAY.
Narrator: AND SCIENTISTS FIND EVIDENCE
THAT ANCIENT GEOLOGICAL FORCES
HAVE TRIGGERED AN UNDERSEA DEATH ZONE.
YOU CAN SEE ANIMALS GET DISORIENTED,
AND THEN DIE VERY QUICKLY.
Narrator: MARINE BIOLOGIST, ERIC
CORDES, DISCOVERS A LAKE OF DEATH
DEEP BENEATH THE WAVES
IN THE GULF OF MEXICO.
HIS FINDINGS HITS THE HEADLINES.
OTHER RESEARCH TEAMS SEND
SUBMERSIBLES TO THE OCEAN FLOOR
IN SEARCH OF ANSWERS.
IT IS SUGGESTED THAT MAN-MADE
ACTIVITY IN THE GULF OF MEXICO
MAY BE TO BLAME FOR THIS MARINE DEATH ZONE.
Kays: THIS IS THE GULF OF MEXICO,
AN AREA FAMOUS FOR ITS OIL PRODUCTION,
AND MAYBE THIS IS CONNECTED
WITH THIS POISONOUS LAKE
WE'RE SEEING DOWN HERE.
FOR EXAMPLE, THERE WAS
DEEPWATER HORIZON DISASTER
WHERE MILLIONS OF BARRELS OF
OIL SPILLED OUT OF A BOREHOLE
AND POLLUTED THE OCEAN.
Narrator: DEEPWATER HORIZON
IS THE BIGGEST ACCIDENTAL
OIL SPILLAGE IN HISTORY.
THE OIL RIG EXPLOSION KILLS 11 PEOPLE.
MORE THAN 200 MILLION GALLONS
OF OIL DISCHARGE INTO THE SEA.
THE SPILL DEVASTATES MARINE LIFE,
IMPACTING AN AREA THE SIZE OF OKLAHOMA.
AND A LOT OF THAT OIL IS STILL THERE,
AND IT'S STILL MOVING AROUND,
AND IT'S STILL CAUSING
IMPACTS YEARS AFTER THE EVENT.
WE WERE LOOKING TO SEE IF THERE
WAS EVIDENCE THAT AN OIL SPILL
IMPACTED THE SITES,
AND WE DID FIND DIFFERENT
PLACES IN THE DEEP SEA
WHERE THE OIL WAS PRESENT,
SO IT'S NO INCONCEIVABLE THAT
THAT COULD HAVE BEEN A CAUSE.
Narrator: YET, CORDES HIGHLIGHTS A PROBLEM
WITH THE OIL SPILL THEORY.
OIL USUALLY POISONS, KILLING SLOWLY.
TOXINS TAKE TIME TO ENTER
A BODY AND DO SERIOUS HARM,
BUT ANYTHING ENTERING THIS
LAKE FACES INSTANT OBLIVION.
Cordes: YOU CAN SEE
ANIMALS GET DISORIENTED,
AND THEN DIE VERY QUICKLY.
I'VE WATCHED EEL-LIKE
FISH SWIM INTO THE LAKE,
AND THEY KIND OF GO INTO
DEATH THROES ALMOST INSTANTLY.
VERY RARELY DO THEY ESCAPE ITS GRASP.
Narrator: BIOLOGIST, ROLAND KAYS,
FOCUSES ON THE LIQUID IN THE LAKE.
HE NOTICES IT LOOKS STRANGELY DIFFERENT
FROM THE SURROUNDING WATER.
YOU HAVE TO WONDER,
WHAT'S CREATING THIS LIQUID.
COULD IT BE AN ORGANISM?
COULD IT BE THE BY-PRODUCT OF AN ORGANISM.
Narrator: SOME OF THE WEIRDEST,
MOST TERRIFYING CREATURES
LURK AT THE BOTTOM OF THE OCEAN.
THEY'RE PERFECTLY ADAPTED
TO THRIVE IN, PERHAPS,
THE MOST HOSTILE ENVIRONMENT ON EARTH.
MARINE BIOLOGIST, JON COPLEY,
OF SOUTHAMPTON UNIVERSITY, ENGLAND,
IS A DEEP-SEA SPECIALIST.
HE KNOWS OF ONE INCREDIBLE
CREATURE THAT COULD BE CREATING
A MUCUS-LIKE LIQUID... THE HAGFISH
Copley: THE HAGFISH IS A
GREAT DEEP-SEA SCAVENGER,
AND IT'S A DESCENDANT OF A VERY ANCIENT
AND PRIMITIVE KIND OF FISH.
IT DOESN'T HAVE PROPER JAWS,
AND IT'S ALSO ABLE TO PRODUCE
HUGE AMOUNTS OF SLIME.
Cordes: WHEN THEY FIND A BIG FISH CARCASS
THEY'LL SCRAPE A HOLE IN IT,
AND THEN GO INSIDE AND
EAT IT FORM THE INSIDE OUT,
AND THEY SECRETE THIS
MUCUS THAT COVERS THEIR BODY.
I'VE SEEN ONE OF THESE HAGFISH
FILL A FIVE-GALLON BUCKET FULL OF SLIME
IN ABOUT 15 MINUTES ON THE DECK OF A SHIP.
Narrator: THIS LAKE IS MUCH
LARGER THAN A FIVE-GALLON BUCKET.
CLIMATE SCIENTIST, JOE LACASCE
BELIEVES IF THE LIQUID IS SLIME,
THE AMOUNT IN THE VIDEO
RULES OUT A HAGFISH.
IT WOULD BE SURPRISING IF A FISH,
OR EVEN A SCHOOL OF
FISH, WERE CAUSING THIS.
IT'S TOO MUCH VOLUME FOR THAT.
Narrator: ROLAND KAYS
RETURNS TO THE FOOTAGE.
HE'S PUZZLED BY THE STRANGE
CONTRAST BETWEEN THE LAKE'S EDGE
AND THE LAKE INTERIOR.
HE WONDERS IF THIS ANOMALY
COULD YIELD VITAL CLUES.
ON ONE SIDE YOU HAVE THIS AMAZING,
BEAUTIFUL BIODIVERSITY UNDER THE OCEAN
WITH ALL THESE DIFFERENT ANIMALS,
AND ALL THESE DIFFERENT COLORS,
AND THEN INSIDE IT'S JUST
DEATH AND DESTRUCTION.
THERE'S ALMOST, LIKE, A
WALL MADE OUT OF MUSSELS,
AND AMONGST THE MUSSELS, THERE'S
A LOT OF OTHER ANIMALS, AS WELL.
THERE ARE SHRIMPS.
THERE ARE SOME LITTLE SQUAT
LOBSTERS, CRAB-LIKE ANIMALS.
Narrator: JOE LACASCE SUSPECTS
THIS ABUNDANCE OF LIFE
SO CLOSE TO THE DEATH ZONE
HINTS AT GEOLOGICAL PROCESSES
BENEATH THE OCEAN FLOOR.
Lacasce: SO YOU HAVE
CRACKS IN THE OCEAN BOTTOM,
AND YOU HAVE LEAKAGE OF
HYDROCARBONS, PRIMARILY METHANE.
METHANE IS A FOOD FOR BACTERIA,
SO BACTERIA SCAVENGE METHANE,
AND THE MUSSELS WILL THEN EAT THE BACTERIA.
Narrator: THE ESCAPING METHANE
ISN'T KILLING THE SEA CREATURES,
BUT SOME OTHER
GEOLOGICAL ACTIVITY MIGHT BE.
THE TEAM NEEDS TO
VENTURE INTO THE DEATH ZONE.
CORDES TAKES THE SUB
DOWN TO THE LAKE'S SURFACE
FOR A CLOSER LOOK.
WE JUST SET DOWN.
BUT THERE'S A PROBLEM.
THE SUBMARINE CAN'T
ACTUALLY PENETRATE THROUGH IT,
SO YOU LAND AND YOU'RE
FLOATING ON THIS WATER
AT THE BOTTOM OF THE OCEAN,
AND IT DOESN'T REALLY MAKE ANY SENSE.
Narrator: COMING UP, APOCALYPTIC SKIES WARN
OF TERRIBLE DESTRUCTION
Sella: WHY WOULD EARTHQUAKES CAUSE LIGHTS?
WHAT'S ACTUALLY GOING ON?
Narrator: TOWERING BEAMS OF
LIGHT BRING A CITY TO A STANDSTILL.
YOU ALMOST IMAGINE THAT
THERE'S A SPACESHIP UP THERE.
Narrator: AND SEA CREATURES
FACE AN AGONIZING DEATH
ON THE OCEAN FLOOR.
IF THEY BLUNDER INTO THAT,
THEY INSTANTLY ASPHYXIATE,
AND THEN THEY DIE.
Narrator: A DEADLY LAKE ON THE OCEAN FLOOR
IS BAFFLING SCIENTISTS.
THE FACT THAT WE'VE GOT
THESE TWO WATER BODIES
MEANS THERE MUST BE
SOMETHING DIFFERENT ABOUT THEM.
ONE MUST BE HEAVIER, DENSER THAN THE OTHER,
SUCH THAT WE'VE HAD THIS SEPARATION.
Narrator: GEOLOGIST, REBECCA BELL,
THINKS THERE COULD BE CLUES
IN THE LAKE WATER'S COMPOSITION.
SO ONE POSSIBILITY THAT CAN MAKE
WATER HEAVIER THAN NORMAL WATER
IS IF IT'S GOT LOTS OF
SALT DISSOLVED INTO IT,
IF IT'S BECOME BRINE.
Narrator: PHYSICIST, SIMON FOSTER,
CONSTRUCTS AN EXPERIMENT
TO TEST THE BRINE THEORY.
ON THE RIGHT-HAND SIDE, DYED BLUE,
WE'VE GOT A BODY OF
WATER THAT'S REALLY SALTY,
AND ON THE LEFT-HAND SIDE
WE'VE GOT A CLEAR BODY OF WATER,
AND THAT'S GOT A REALLY
LOW SALT CONCENTRATION.
Narrator: FOSTER'S SETUP
REVEALS WHAT HAPPENS
WHEN THE EXTRA SALTY AND
REGULAR SEA WATER COMBINE.
♪♪
Foster: SO YOU'VE GOT THE
LESS SALTY, LESS DENSE WATER,
SITTING ON TOP,
AND YOU'VE GOT THE DENSER
SALTY WATER STUCK TO THE BOTTOM,
AND THE REASON IS VERY, VERY
SALTY WATER IS A LOT DENSER.
YOU'VE GOT THESE TWO SEPARATE BODIES.
THEY'RE NOT MIXING.
Narrator: REBECCA BELL DEVELOPS A THEORY
FOR HOW THIS SINISTER UNDERWATER
LAKE COULD HAVE FORMED.
IN THE GULF OF MEXICO, IN THE MID-JURASSIC,
THAT WAS 165 MILLION YEARS AGO
WHERE THERE WERE
DINOSAURS WANDERING AROUND,
THIS AREA OF THE WORLD WAS A SHALLOW BASIN.
EVERY NOW AND AGAIN IT
GOT FILLED WITH SALTY WATER.
THAT WATER EVAPORATED
DUE TO THE HEAT OF THE SUN,
AND WE STARTED TO BUILD
UP THIS LAYER OF SALT.
Narrator: THE SALT LAYER
BUILDS UP TO 5,000 FEET THICK.
OVER MILLIONS OF YEARS,
SEDIMENT PILES ON TOP OF THE SALT.
THEN THE OCEANS RE-FLOOD THE AREA.
SO DEEP, DEEP, DEEP BENEATH THE SEA FLOOR
THERE'S ACTUALLY A LAYER OF ROCK SALT
WHERE WE ARE HERE IN THE GULF OF MEXICO.
THAT ROCK SALT IS LIGHTER
THAN ALL THE SEDIMENTS
THAT ARE ABOVE IT, THE OCEAN MUD,
SO IT'S ALWAYS PUSHING ITS WAY UP
TOWARDS THE SURFACE OF THE SEA FLOOR,
AND IN SOME PLACES IT
MAKES IT TO THE SURFACE.
Narrator: WHEN THE SALT
BURSTS THROUGH THE SEDIMENTS
IT DISSOLVES TO FORM A BRINE
LAKE ON THE OCEAN FLOOR.
SO WE END UP WITH HYPERSALINE WATER,
WHICH IS MUCH DENSER THAN
TYPICAL SALTY SEA WATER.
EVENTUALLY, WE MIGHT GET SOME MINERALS
STARTING TO CRYSTALLIZE OUT OF THE BRINE,
WHICH IN THIS CASE SEEMS TO PRODUCE
THESE RIMS TO THE BRINE POOL.
Narrator: JON COPLEY BELIEVES
THIS HYPERSALINITY EXPLAINS
THE MYSTERY OF THE DEAD ZONE.
AS GASES BUBBLE UP THROUGH THE SALT CRUST,
THEY ARE STRIPPED OF OXYGEN.
THERE ARE A LOT OF DEAD
ANIMALS IN THAT BRINE LAKE
BECAUSE THE BRINE, ITSELF,
DOESN'T HAVE OXYGEN IN IT.
WHEN YOU ELIMINATE OXYGEN FROM
A HABITAT YOU'RE GOING TO EXCLUDE
ALMOST EVERY KIND OF
ANIMAL THAT WE KNOW OF.
IF THEY BLUNDER INTO THAT
BRINE THEY INSTANTLY ASPHYXIATE,
AND THEN THEY DIE AND
SINK TO THE BOTTOM OF IT.
Narrator: MARINE CREATURES
ARE LITERALLY DROWNING
IN THESE CREEPY DEEP-SEA LAKES OF DEATH.
♪♪
NOW, A SURVEILLANCE CAMERA
CAPTURES MYSTERIOUS FLASHES
IN THE DEAD OF NIGHT.
YOU GOT LIGHTS APPEARING ALL AROUND YOU.
WHAT ON EARTH WAS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT?
Narrator: MOMENTS LATER, DISASTER STRIKES.
ALL OF A SUDDEN, THE EARTH STARTS SHAKING.
Sella: WHY WOULD EARTHQUAKES CAUSE LIGHTS?
WHAT'S ACTUALLY GOING ON?
Narrator: GUAYAQUIL, THE LARGEST
CITY IN ECUADOR, SOUTH AMERICA.
IT IS THE MAIN CITY FOR COMMERCE,
FOR ENTERTAINMENT, FOR EVERYTHING,
SO IT'S PRETTY MUCH CONSIDERED
A BIG CITY WITHIN SOUTH AMERICA.
Narrator: APRIL 16, 2016, 6:54 P.M.
A SURVEILLANCE CAMERA RECORDS
A SERIES OF UNEXPLAINED LIGHTS
ILLUMINATING THE CITY SKYLINE.
AS I WAS LOOKING OUT AT
THE SKY I SAW SOME LIGHTS,
SOME WHITE AND BRIGHT BLUE LIGHTS.
I FROZE UP. I DIDN'T KNOW WHAT THAT WAS.
Narrator: A DAZZLING LIGHT SHOW IN THE SKY,
OR SOMETHING FAR MORE MENACING.
SOME ARE EVEN APPEARING
DIRECTLY IN THE CENTER OF THE CITY.
WHAT ARE THESE LIGHTS
THAT WE'RE SEEING HERE?
Narrator: AND THEN, DISASTER.
I FELT LIKE THE HOUSES WERE COMING DOWN.
Pablo: I WAS SURE I WAS GOING TO DIE,
AND I'M SURE A LOT OF
PEOPLE FELT THE SAME WAY.
Narrator: THE MAGNITUDE 7.8 EARTHQUAKE
TAKES THE LIVES OF ALMOST 700 PEOPLE.
SOME BELIEVE THE LIGHTS ARE WARNING SIGNS
OF AN IMPENDING DISASTER.
SCIENTISTS EXAMINE THE
SURVEILLANCE FOOTAGE.
MOST BELIEVE ANY CONNECTION
BETWEEN THE STRANGE BURSTS OF LIGHT
AND THE DEVASTATING
EARTHQUAKE IS COINCIDENTAL.
EXPERTS EXPLORE WHAT COULD
REALLY BE TRIGGERING THE PHENOMENON.
PHYSICIST, DAVID WALLACE, OF
MISSISSIPPI STATE UNIVERSITY,
FOCUSES ON THE COLOR OF THE LIGHTS.
HE SUSPECTS ONE OF NATURE'S
MOST SPECTACULAR EVENTS
COULD BE TO BLAME.
THEY ARE A BRIGHT WHITE,
OR A BRIGHT BLUE-ISH COLOR,
WHICH COULD TEND TO LEAD ITSELF
TO BEING AN ELECTRICAL
PHENOMENON OCCURRING.
MY FIRST REACTION WAS
THAT IT LOOKS LIKE LIGHTNING.
Narrator: WALLACE CHECKS
THE ATMOSPHERIC CONDITIONS
IN THE SURVEILLANCE TAPE.
Wallace: IT DOES APPEAR TO
BE A RATHER CLOUDY NIGHT,
SO IT WOULD GIVE PREVALENCE TO LIGHTNING
BEING ABLE TO FORM AND STRIKING.
Narrator: WORLDWIDE,
LIGHTNING FLASHES OCCUR
AROUND 8 MILLION TIMES A DAY.
FIVE TIMES HOTTER THAN
THE SURFACE OF THE SUN,
EACH BOLT RELEASES AROUND
1 BILLION VOLTS OF ELECTRICITY.
PHYSICIST, SCOTT DUBOWSKI,
CONSIDERS IF IT'S POSSIBLE EARTHQUAKES
COULD ALSO GENERATE LIGHTNING.
ANYTHING WHERE YOU HAVE A VERY
LARGE AMOUNT OF STORED ENERGY
THAT CAN BE DISCHARGED IN SOME FORM,
LIGHTNING USUALLY FOLLOWS IT.
Narrator: BUT CLOSER
ANALYSIS OF THE ECUADOR TAPE
REVEALS THESE LIGHT
FLASHES APPEAR TO BEHAVE
DIFFERENTLY FROM MOST LIGHTNING STRIKES.
WHAT I WOULD EXPECT TO SEE IN THE FOOTAGE
IS AT LEAST SOME SORT OF THE
TRADITIONAL THING YOU THINK
ABOUT WITH A LIGHTNING STRIKE,
SOME SORT OF BOLT-LIKE
STRUCTURE FROM CLOUD TO CLOUD,
OR FROM CLOUD TO GROUND.
Narrator: EYEWITNESS ACCOUNTS
SEEM TO SUPPORT THIS.
SO THE QUESTION THEN IS WHAT IS THIS?
Narrator: COMING UP, GHOSTLY BEAMS OF LIGHT
APPEAR IN THE NIGHT SKY OVER OSLO, NORWAY.
IS IT EXTRATERRESTRIAL?
IS IT SOME SORT OF GOVERNMENT THING
TO CONTACT PEOPLE IN SPACE?
Narrator: AND SCIENTISTS RACE TO EXPLAIN
ONE OF THE STRANGEST PHENOMENA ON EARTH.
Sella: WE'RE TALKING ABOUT
ENORMOUS PRESSURES TAKING PLACE,
AND THAT MIGHT GENERATE
THOSE EXTRAORDINARY FLASHES.
Narrator: SCIENTISTS ARE
BAFFLED BY THE WEIRD LIGHTS
CAPTURED ON SURVEILLANCE CAMERA
MOMENTS BEFORE A DEADLY EARTHQUAKE.
THEY CONSIDER WHETHER THE
CITY'S ELECTRICAL POWER SUPPLY
TRIGGERS THE FLASHES.
IF YOU HAVE AN EARTHQUAKE
YOU COULD CAUSE GENERATORS
TO BLOW AND ELECTRICITY CABLES TO COLLAPSE,
AND THAT ALSO CAN PRODUCE LIGHTS.
Narrator: BUT LOCAL SCIENTISTS
ARGUE THAT BUILT-IN SAFEGUARDS
MAKE THIS IDEA UNLIKELY.
GEOLOGIST, REBECCA BELL,
NOTICES THAT THE TIME STAMP
ON THE SURVEILLANCE FOOTAGE
RULES OUT A POWER-GRID EXPLOSION.
THOSE FLASHES OF LIGHT OCCURRED TWO MINUTES
BEFORE THAT EARTHQUAKE HIT.
THERE'S NOTHING THAT I CAN THINK
OF THAT WOULD CAUSE TRANSFORMERS
TO BLOW BEFORE THE EARTHQUAKE
TORE APART THE POWER GRID.
Narrator: A REVIEW OF
HISTORICAL RECORDS REVEALS
THAT THIS ISN'T THE FIRST TIME
PEOPLE HAVE WITNESSED STRANGE LIGHTS
BEFORE AN EARTHQUAKE.
THERE HAVE BEEN REPORTS OF LIGHTS
ASSOCIATED WITH EARTHQUAKES FOR CENTURIES.
BUT THERE HASN'T BEEN CONFIRMED SIGHTINGS
OF THESE EARTHQUAKE LIGHTS.
Narrator: SOME GEOLOGISTS BELIEVE
THE GUAYAQUIL SURVEILLANCE
TAPE COULD BE A SMOKING GUN,
EVIDENCE THAT EARTHQUAKES
DO GENERATE LIGHTS.
SCIENTISTS CONSIDER HOW.
ANDREAS SELLA IS A CHEMIST
AT UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON.
HE PROPOSES EARTHQUAKES RELEASE
SUCH MASSIVE AMOUNTS OF ENERGY
THAT SOME FORM OF
ELECTRICAL CHARGE IS POSSIBLE.
Sella: WE'RE TALKING ABOUT
MILLIONS, IF NOT BILLIONS,
OF TONS, ENORMOUS PRESSURES TAKING PLACE.
Narrator: SELLA SETS UP A
LABORATORY-LEVEL VERSION
OF TECTONIC PLATES COLLIDING
DURING AN EARTHQUAKE.
WHAT I HAVE HERE ARE
TWO LUMPS OF ROSE QUARTZ,
AND WHAT I'M GOING TO DO IS I'M
GOING TO STRIKE THEM TOGETHER,
AND YOU NEED TO LOOK VERY,
VERY CLOSELY AT THE ROCK.
IF THE THEORY IS RIGHT, HE EXPECTS TO SEE
AN ELECTRICAL DISCHARGE
AROUND THE IMPACT POINT.
THERE ARE TINY, LITTLE FLASHES
ON THE EDGE JUST AT THE POINT
WHERE THE TWO ROCKS STRIKE EACH OTHER.
THIS ISN'T SIMPLY DOWN TO FRICTION.
Narrator: SELLA BELIEVES THE IMPACT MUST BE
CHARGING THE ATOMS IN THE ROCKS.
WHEN WE ACTUALLY STRIKE
THE TWO ROCKS TOGETHER,
A SHOCK WAVE TRAVELS THROUGH THE MATERIAL,
WHICH SHIFTS THE RELATIVE
POSITIONS OF THE ATOMS,
AND IN DOING SO, THE ROCK
BECOMES PARTIALLY ELECTRIFIED.
Narrator: COULD THIS EFFECT,
SCALED UP A THOUSANDFOLD,
EXPLAIN THE MYSTERY LIGHTS?
Sella: WHAT IF WE TAKE HUGE LAND MASSES
AND START PRESSING THEM TOGETHER,
AND RELEASING THAT PRESSURE
AS PART OF AN EARTHQUAKE?
AND THAT MIGHT GENERATE
THOSE EXTRAORDINARY FLASHES
WE SEE ON THE HORIZON.
Narrator: SELLA'S EXPERIMENT
SHOWS THAT CRYSTALLINE ROCKS
LIKE QUARTZ CAN GENERATE SPARKS,
BUT GEOLOGICAL SURVEYS OF THE
EARTHQUAKE EPICENTER IN ECUADOR
REVEAL A PROBLEM.
THE GEOLOGY OF THIS AREA IN ECUADOR
IS DOMINATED BY SEDIMENTARY ROCKS,
WHICH DON'T HAVE THE
SAME CRYSTAL STRUCTURE.
Narrator: SCIENTISTS ARE STILL
SEARCHING FOR AN ANSWER
TO THE MYSTERY OF THESE BIZARRE LIGHTS.
EARTHQUAKE LIGHTS ARE ONE OF THE
GREAT CHALLENGES OF GEOPHYSICS.
AS YOU STRIP AWAY THE
LAYERS OF THE OBVIOUS,
WHAT YOU'RE GONNA BE
LEFT WITH IS AN UNUSUAL,
AND SO FAR, UNEXPLAINED PHENOMENON.
♪♪
Narrator: NOW, GHOSTLY
COLUMNS OF LIGHT TOWER ABOVE
NORWAY'S CAPITAL CITY.
IT'S ABSOLUTELY SPECTACULAR.
I'VE NEVER SEEN ANYTHING QUITE LIKE THAT.
IT LOOKS SUPERNATURAL IN SOME KIND OF WAY.
Narrator: SOME FEAR AN ALIEN INVASION.
YOU ALMOST IMAGINE THAT
THERE'S A SPACESHIP UP THERE.
IT'S UNIDENTIFIED OBJECT.
♪♪
Narrator: OSLO, NORWAY... JANUARY, 2016.
IT'S AN ICY MIDWINTER NIGHT.
LOCAL PHOTOGRAPHER, CHRIS-HAVARD BERGE,
TAKES IN THE VIEW.
I WAS JUST LOOKING OUT THE WINDOW,
AND THEN I SAW SOME STRANGE,
UNIQUE LIGHT ON THE SKY
IN DIFFERENT COLORS
LIKE BLUE AND A BIT YELLOW.
IT LOOKED SUPERNATURAL IN SOME KIND OF WAY.
I GRABBED MY CAMERA AND MY TRIPOD
AND WENT OUT TO TRY TO SEE IF
I COULD GET SOME PHOTOS OF IT,
AND I FIRED UP THE TIME-LAPSE.
I THOUGHT, "WOW. SOMETHING
STRANGE IS GOING ON."
IT WAS MOVING, LIKE, UP AND DOWN.
I WAS WONDERING WHAT
WOULD MAKE THIS HAPPEN.
Narrator: CHRIS-HAVARD POSTS HIS PICTURES
OF THE OTHERWORLDLY LIGHT BEAMS ONLINE.
THE FOOTAGE GOES VIRAL.
IT WAS REALLY COOL TO SEE THAT
THIS WAS QUITE A UNIQUE CAPTURE.
Narrator: HIS IMAGES SEND THE
INTERNET INTO A FRENZY OF SPECULATION.
SOME BELIEVE ALIEN INVADERS
ARE POISED TO ATTACK.
YOU ALMOST IMAGINE THAT
THERE'S A SPACESHIP UP THERE
BECAUSE OF THE VERTICALNESS OF
THE LIGHT COMING DOWN THAT WAY.
IT LOOKS SO STRANGE. I
MEAN, IS IT EXTRATERRESTRIAL?
IS IT SOME SORT OF GOVERNMENT THING
TO CONTACT PEOPLE IN SPACE?
♪♪
Narrator: OSLO RESIDENTS FEAR
THAT GHOSTLY COLUMNS OF LIGHT
ILLUMINATING THE NORWEGIAN CITY
COULD BE A SIGN OF AN ALIEN INVASION.
EXPERTS SUSPECT THE SPECTACULAR LIGHT SHOW
ORIGINATES CLOSER TO HOME.
SO YOU MIGHT THINK THAT THERE
WAS A HEAVENLY EXPLANATION
FOR IT.
Narrator: ANALYSTS
CONSIDER IF THE TIME OF YEAR
MAY BE SIGNIFICANT.
EERIE LIGHT SHOWS ARE A REGULAR
FEATURE OF THE WINTER SKIES
IN OSLO.
QUITE OFTEN, ACTUALLY, THE NORTHERN LIGHTS
IS VISIBLE IN OSLO.
THIS WINTER IT WAS
VISIBLE MAYBE 10, 12 TIMES.
Narrator: THE NORTHERN LIGHTS
OF AURORA BOREALIS FORM
WHEN THE SUN EJECTS SOLAR WINDS
THAT TRAVEL AT A MILLION MILES AN HOUR.
THE CHARGED PARTICLES WITHIN THE WINDS
HIT THE EARTH'S ATMOSPHERE.
ACTUALLY, MOVING DOWN TOWARDS THE EARTH
THEY WILL EVENTUALLY
ALIGN WITH THE ATMOSPHERE,
AND THEY WILL TRANSFER
SOME ENERGY TO THESE ATOMS,
AND THEY GET EXCITED.
Narrator: THE ENERGY IS RELEASED
IN THE FORM OF COLORED LIGHTS,
THE AURORA.
PHYSICIST, GABBY PROVAN,
FOCUSES IN ON THE COLORS
THAT MAKE UP THE MYSTERY SHAFTS OF LIGHT.
SHE SPOTS A SIMILARITY
WITH THE NORTHERN LIGHTS.
Provan: YOU CAN GET AURORAS ALMOST A, LIKE,
A WHITE, LIGHT-GREEN COLOR,
AND THERE WAS A WHITE
LIGHT THERE IN THE MIDDLE
THAT LOOKS SIMILAR TO THE AURORA.
Narrator: BUT CLOSER
INSPECTION OF THE FOOTAGE
REVEALS SOMETHING ABOUT THE
SHAPE OF THE MYSTERY COLUMNS
THAT RULES OUT THE NORTHERN LIGHTS.
Gay: WITH THE AURORA
BOREALIS WE SEE THE MOVEMENT,
WE SEE THE DANCE,
AND WE DON'T SEE THESE
PERFECTLY STRAIGHT LINES
THAT VARY WITH THE BLOWING WIND.
♪♪
Narrator: EXPERTS SWITCH THEIR
SEARCH TO TERRESTRIAL POSSIBILITIES.
Provan: IT ALMOST LOOKS LIKE
SOMEONE SWITCHED ON A FLOODLIGHT
AND POINTED IT RIGHT UP IN THE SKY.
IT REMINDS ME OF WHEN YOU GO
TO A ROCK CONCERT OR SOMETHING,
THAT THEY'RE PUTTING ON THESE LIGHT SHOWS
FOR THE CONCERT
BECAUSE THERE ARE SO MANY COLORS.
Narrator: A CHECK OF THE RECORDS
CONFIRMS THERE ARE NO FLOODLIT CONCERTS
ON THE NIGHT OF THE GHOSTLY LIGHTS.
♪♪
METEOROLOGIST, HELENE
MURI, FROM OSLO UNIVERSITY,
STUDIES THE IMAGES.
SHE SUSPECTS THE WEATHER MAY PLAY A ROLE
IN PRODUCING THE LASER-LIKE LIGHT SHOW.
YOU CAN SEE THAT THERE
ARE SOME MID-LEVEL CLOUDS,
AND ALSO SOME HIGH-LEVEL CLOUDS THERE,
AND THESE HIGH-LEVEL CLOUDS, IN PARTICULAR,
WOULD BE MADE OUT OF ICE.
Narrator: MURI BELIEVES
THE HIGH-LEVEL CLOUDS
ARE A SIGN THAT CONDITIONS ARE
COLD ENOUGH FOR ICE CRYSTALS
TO FORM IN THE LOWER ATMOSPHERE.
IT HAS TO BE BELOW FREEZING, MINUS-5,
AND DOWN TO, SORT OF, MINUS-40,
SO YOU NEED IT TO BE JUST COLD ENOUGH,
AND JUST RIGHT THE LEVEL OF
HUMIDITY TO FORM ICE CRYSTALS.
Narrator: CLIMATE SCIENTIST, JOE LACASCE,
BELIEVES THE ICE CRYSTAL STRUCTURE
IS CRUCIAL TO CREATING
THIS SPOOKY PHENOMENON.
Lacasce: THESE ICE PARTICLES
TEND TO HAVE A HEXAGONAL SHAPE,
AND THEY TEND TO BE FLAT,
SO THEY'RE LIKE THESE LITTLE MIRRORS.
AND THEY WOULD SORT OF HOVER, SO TO SAY,
AND BE SUSPENDED IN THE AIR.
Narrator: HELEN MURI SEARCHES
FOR THE TYPE OF LIGHT
THAT CAN CREATE THIS EFFECT.
IF YOU HAVE A LIGHT SOURCE FROM
THE GROUND, SAY STREET LAMPS,
OR WHATEVER, HITTING THE
SMALL ICE CRYSTALS FROM BELOW,
THEY ACT AS A MIRROR TO
GET REFRACTION OF THE LIGHT.
WHAT YOU'RE SEEING WITH A LIGHT PILLAR
IS THE, BASICALLY, REFLECTION OF LIGHT.
IT'S LIGHT FROM ANOTHER
SOURCE THAT'S BEING REFLECTED
OFF THESE ICE PARTICLES TOWARDS YOU.
Narrator: HELEN MURI
CONFIRMS CHRIS-HAVARD IMAGES
BE A STUNNING EXAMPLE
OF A RARELY SEEN EVENT.
YOU WOULD BE QUITE LUCKY
TO GET THE OPPORTUNITY
TO SEE AND FILM THIS
BECAUSE THEY ARE SO RARE.
IT'S RARE THAT YOU GET ENOUGH HUMIDITY
AND COLD ENOUGH
TEMPERATURES AT THE SAME TIME.
Berge: IT WAS AMAZING JUST TO WATCH IT.
YOU SHOULD HAVE BEEN THERE.
Narrator: OSLO CITIZENS CAN REST EASY.
THE TOWERING COLUMNS OF
LIGHT LOOMING OVER THEIR CITY
ARE NOT AN ALIEN INVASION... THIS TIME.