Strange Evidence (2017–…): Season 2, Episode 11 - The Incident at Area 51 - full transcript
Near Area 51, a police convoy is filmed transporting a alien-looking craft in the dead of night. When strange beams of light are reported in Argentina, experts investigate if it's proof of a terrifying Nazi superweapon.
Narrator: WORLDWIDE, SIX
BILLION 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.
[ PEOPLE SCREAMING ]
Narrator: COMING UP...
OUTSIDE AREA 51, UNDER HEAVY POLICE ESCORT,
IN THE WEE HOURS OF THE MORNING.
OH, MY HEART WAS RACING.
THERE WAS COPS EVERYWHERE.
I WAS REALLY SCARED TO
ACTUALLY TAKE THE VIDEO.
THIS IS THE CLOSEST I'VE SEEN
TO WHAT WE ACTUALLY IMAGINE
A FLYING SAUCER LOOKS LIKE.
Narrator: IN THE LAND OF COUNTESS DRACULA,
SOMETHING IS STIRRING.
IT'S LIKE SOMEONE HIT
THE SELF-DESTRUCT BUTTON
ON THE FOREST.
Narrator: AND ENGINEER MATT
KUTCHER BLOWS UP T.N.T.
TO INVESTIGATE POTENTIALLY LETHAL,
UNIDENTIFIED YELLOW BLOBS.
IS IT MANMADE, IS IT
CHEMICAL, IS IT ORGANIC?
WE HAVE NO IDEA.
Narrator: BIZARRE PHENOMENA.
MYSTERIES CAUGHT ON CAMERA.
WHAT'S THE TRUTH BEHIND
THIS STRANGE EVIDENCE?
TWO LOCAL MEN OVERHEAR A COP TALKING
AND HOURS LATER, THEY CAPTURE THIS FOOTAGE.
THAT'S A SPACESHIP.
IT WAS A CIRCLE SHAPE
WITH A WHITE TARP COVERING THE THING.
IT LOOKS LIKE SOMETHING FROM ANOTHER WORLD.
♪♪
Narrator: HAS AREA 51 FINALLY BEEN EXPOSED?
THERE WAS COPS EVERYWHERE.
I WAS REALLY SCARED.
THIS HAS "TOP SECRET"
WRITTEN ALL OVER IT.
♪♪
Narrator: THE MOJAVE DESERT
IN CALIFORNIA STRETCHES
ALMOST 50,000-SQUARE-MILES
FROM L.A. TO NEVADA.
DEEP IN THIS ARID WASTELAND
LIES EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE
AND ITS HIGHLY CLASSIFIED
CENTER FOR BLACK OP TESTS,
AREA 51.
Kurth: IT'S PRETTY STRANGE.
IT'S A LOT OF DESERT, LOT OF OPEN SPACE.
THERE'S NOT A LOT OF PEOPLE.
Narrator: MAY 30, 2012, LATE EVENING...
FRIENDS JEFF KURTH AND JASON MOYER
STOP AT A GAS STATION
ABOUT 20 MILES FROM EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE.
I OVERHEARD THESE TWO
HIGHWAY PATROL OFFICERS TALKING.
THEY WERE REAL SECRETIVE.
AND THEY SAID THEY HAD
TO MOVE SOMETHING AT 1:30.
AND IT WAS VERY SUSPICIOUS.
WHAT WERE THEY MOVING
AT 1:30 IN THE MORNING?
Narrator: THE FRIENDS PARK
AT A SAFE DISTANCE FROM THE ROAD,
TURN OFF THE LIGHTS, LIE LOW, AND WAIT.
AT 2:00 A.M., IN THE DEAD OF NIGHT,
A MASSIVE SECURITY PRESENCE
SUDDENLY SHOWS ITSELF.
I DID NOT WANT TO GET CAUGHT
WITH... WITH THE CAMERAS.
OH, MY HEART WAS RACING.
THERE WAS COPS EVERYWHERE.
I WAS REALLY SCARED TO
ACTUALLY TAKE THE VIDEO.
Narrator: BUT NOT AS SCARED
AS THEY FEEL WHEN THEY SEE
WHAT THESE COPS ARE ESCORTING.
♪♪
THAT'S A SPACESHIP.
NEVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE THAT.
IT WAS OBVIOUSLY SOMETHING
THAT WAS UNDER THE
CONTROL OF THE GOVERNMENT.
THIS INCIDENT TAKES PLACE
OUTSIDE THE PERIMETER OF AREA 51.
JEFF HAS HIS OWN THEORY.
SOMETHING CRASHED,
AND THEY'RE TRANSPORTING
IT TO ANOTHER BASE.
THE FOOTAGE AMAZES EXPERTS.
IT'S THE DEAD OF NIGHT.
THERE'S A POLICE CONVOY.
WHAT EXACTLY IS ON THE BACK OF THIS TRUCK?
THIS IS A CLOSE ENCOUNTER OF A WEIRD KIND.
Moran: THAT BIG SECURITY PRESENCE...
THEY CLEARLY DON'T WANT ANYONE
GETTING TOO CLOSE TO THIS THING.
THE FOOTAGE REACHES LINDSAY MORAN.
AS AN EX-CIA UNDERCOVER OPERATIVE,
SHE HAS DIRECT EXPERIENCE
OF TOP-LEVEL COVER-UPS.
FOR DECADES, CONSPIRACY THEORISTS
HERE IN THE UNITED STATES
HAVE THOUGHT THAT THE U.S. GOVERNMENT
DOES POSSESS ALIEN TECHNOLOGY.
Narrator: BELIEVERS INSIST
THIS ALIEN TECHNOLOGY
MUST BE STORED AT THE MILITARY'S
MOST SECRET INSTALLATION,
AREA 51.
BUT UNTIL 2013, THE U.S. MILITARY
REFUSED TO ACKNOWLEDGE
THAT AREA 51 EVEN EXISTS.
THE TIMING OF THIS
VIDEO IS KIND OF CURIOUS,
BECAUSE THIS WAS IN 2012.
A FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT REQUEST
REVEALED ON THE 23rd OF JUNE, 2013,
THAT EDWARDS AIR FORCE
BASE ALSO CONTROLS AREA 51.
IF THE GOVERNMENT KNEW THEY
WERE GOING TO HAVE TO REVEAL
THE EXISTENCE AND LOCATION OF AREA 51
AND THEY DID HAVE ALIEN TECHNOLOGY THERE,
IT STANDS TO REASON
THAT THIS MIGHT BE THE
IDEAL TIME TO MOVE IT.
♪♪
Narrator: WHATEVER THE NATURE
AND ORIGIN OF THIS OBJECT,
WHY IS IT BEING MOVED WITH A POLICE CONVOY
IN THE DEAD OF NIGHT?
TO MOVE SOMETHING THAT
SECRET, RIGHT OUT IN THE OPEN,
ON THE BACK OF A TRUCK, IT'S JUST SEEMS...
IT JUST SEEMS PREPOSTEROUS.
Narrator: WAS THIS AN
EMERGENCY OF SOME SORT?
DID SOMETHING GO WRONG ON THE AREA 51 BASE?
♪♪
ONE PERSISTENT THEORY ABOUT AREA 51
IS THAT GOVERNMENT AGENCIES
DELIBERATELY FOSTERED RUMORS
OF EXTRATERRESTRIAL CRAFT
IN ORDER TO CONCEAL THEIR
OWN EXPERIMENTAL AIRCRAFT.
THIS IS THE CLOSEST I'VE SEEN
TO WHAT WE ACTUALLY IMAGINE
A FLYING SAUCER LOOKS LIKE,
FROM ALL OF THE SCIENCE FICTION MOVIES.
IF THE PUBLIC IS BELIEVING
THAT THERE'S A UFO
OR SOME KIND OF ALIEN TECHNOLOGY,
IT MIGHT DIVERT THE PUBLIC'S ATTENTION
FROM SOME CONTROVERSIAL
TOP-SECRET TECHNOLOGY
THAT THE GOVERNMENT DOESN'T
WANT THE PUBLIC TALKING ABOUT.
Narrator: DOES THE LACK OF A TARP SUGGEST
THAT THE AGENCY THAT RUNS AREA 51
INTENDS FOR THIS CRAFT TO BE SEEN?
♪♪
DECLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS
REVEAL HOW, IN THE 1980s,
UFO HUNTER PAUL BENNEWITZ
STUMBLED ACROSS A BLACK OPS PROJECT,
JUST LIKE KURTH AND MOYER.
WHEN IT WAS FEARED THAT BENNEWITZ
WAS ABOUT TO EXPOSE A
TOP-SECRET STEALTH HELICOPTER,
HE WAS THE TARGET OF A
SO-CALLED "MISDIRECTION OPERATION."
AIR FORCE AGENT RICHARD DOTY
ACTUALLY FED BENNEWITZ FAKE DOCUMENTS
THAT PROVED AN ALIEN INVASION WAS IMMINENT.
BENNEWITZ BELIEVED THESE
DOCUMENTS TO BE TRUE
AND RAN WITH THE STORY,
TELLING THE ENTIRE UFO COMMUNITY
THAT AN INVASION WAS COMING.
[ SIREN WAILS ]
Narrator: THE PLAN WORKED,
DIVERTING BENNEWITZ AWAY
FROM THE TOP-SECRET PROGRAM
AND TOWARDS A MENTAL BREAKDOWN.
BENNEWITZ BECAME OBSESSED
WITH THE IDEA OF AN
IMMINENT ALIEN INVASION,
AND THE IDEA ACTUALLY
ENDED UP DRIVING HIM MAD.
HE HAD TO BE INSTITUTIONALIZED,
AND HE LOST ALL CREDIBILITY.
THIS WAS A TEXTBOOK EXAMPLE OF MISDIRECTION
BY THE AIR FORCE.
Narrator: ARE KURTH AND MOYER
THE LATEST INNOCENT PAWNS
IN ANOTHER SINISTER GOVERNMENT PROGRAM
OF MISDIRECTION?
THEY REALLY DON'T CARE ABOUT THE WELL-BEING
OF INDIVIDUALS CAUGHT UP IN THESE STORIES.
NOW, YOU HAVE TO WONDER
WHETHER OR NOT THESE TWO WITNESSES
ARE BEING USED IN THE SAME WAY.
Narrator: BUT KURTH AND MOYER
ARE CONVINCED OF WHAT THEY SAW.
I REALLY BELIEVE THAT THE GOVERNMENT
HAS ALIEN TECHNOLOGY
AND THEY'VE REVERSE-ENGINEERED CRAFTS.
THERE'S EXTRATERRESTRIAL LIFE OUT THERE,
OTHER THAN US.
WHATEVER ITS ORIGIN, A
MILITARY ANALYST EXAMINES
THE SHAPE OF THE CRAFT
FOR ADDITIONAL CLUES.
THERE ARE NOTICEABLE FLAT SECTIONS
ON THE SIDE OF THE OBJECT,
WHICH IS WHERE YOU COULD ATTACH WINGS.
IT'S NOT UNCOMMON FOR WINGS
TO BE REMOVED OR FOLDED OVER ON AN AIRCRAFT
TO MAKE IT EASIER TO TRANSPORT.
SO, I THINK WHAT WE HAVE
HERE IS SOMETHING WITH WINGS.
Narrator: BUT WINGS OR NO WINGS,
THERE'S SOMETHING NOT RIGHT
ABOUT THIS MYSTERY CRAFT.
THE PROFILE OF THIS
OBJECT DOESN'T MATCH ANY
OF THE COMBAT DRONES
CURRENTLY IN FLIGHT RIGHT NOW.
AND THAT IS A PRETTY SCARY PROPOSITION.
Narrator: COMING UP, EX-DOGS.
IS THERE A GENETIC MUTATION
TURNING THESE DOGS BLUE
AND COULD IT BE PASSED ON TO A HUMAN?
IT CERTAINLY TURNED HIS SKIN BLUE...
SERIOUSLY BLUE.
Narrator: EXPLODING TOXIC ALIEN BLOBS.
♪♪
AND A CRAFT CONTROLLED
BY NON-HUMAN INTELLIGENCE.
Narrator: IN CALIFORNIA, TWO
LOCALS CAPTURE FOOTAGE
OF AN UNIDENTIFIED CRAFT
BEING ESCORTED IN THE DEAD OF NIGHT,
CLOSE TO AREA 51.
THAT THING HAD NO VISIBLE ENGINES OR MOTORS
OF ANY TECHNOLOGY THAT
WE CURRENTLY POSSESS.
MILITARY ANALYST CARLO MUñOZ WONDERS
IF THIS MIGHT BE SOMETHING
NEW IN THE U.S. ARSENAL
THAT'S CONTROLLED BY
NON-HUMAN INTELLIGENCE.
WHAT IT DOES LOOK LIKE IS
SOMETHING THAT WAS TESTED
BY THE U.S. NAVY IN 2011.
AND THAT WAS NORTHROP
GRUMMAN'S X-47B CARRIER DRONE...
MINUS ITS SWINGS.
♪♪
Narrator: WHEN MUNOZ COMPARES BOTH IMAGES,
HE'S LEFT WITHOUT A DOUBT
THAT THE CRAFT ON THE BACK OF THE TRUCK
IS THE X-47B DRONE.
THE X-47B LAUNCHES DRONE TECHNOLOGY
INTO A NEW ERA.
UNLIKE THE PREDATOR,
THIS DOESN'T NEED A GROUND-BASED PILOT.
IT'S AUTONOMOUS AND INTELLIGENT.
SMART ENOUGH TO LAND
ON AN AIRCRAFT CARRIER,
TOUGH ENOUGH TO SURVIVE AT SEA,
AND HAVE A BIG ENOUGH
BOMB BAY TO DROP WEAPONS.
THIS ROBOTIC AIRCRAFT MAKES
SCIENCE FICTION A REALITY,
AN A.I. KILLER STALKING THE SKIES,
ABLE TO TERMINATE TARGETS
WITHOUT A HUMAN HANDLER.
BUT THE INVENTION OF A NEW GENERATION
OF ARTIFICIALLY INTELLIGENT KILLER ROBOTS
BRINGS A FUTURE, WHICH MANY PEOPLE DREAD,
CLOSER TO REALITY.
Muñoz: YOU DON'T HAVE A
PERSON BEHIND THE CONTROLS,
SO IF THE PROGRAM WITHIN
THE DRONE SOMEHOW MESSES UP,
YOU COULD HAVE A CATASTROPHE ON YOUR HANDS.
THEY CAN BE HACKED BY THE ENEMY.
ONCE THE ENEMY TAKES
CONTROL OF THAT AIRCRAFT,
IT CAN BASICALLY DO
WHATEVER IT WANTS WITH IT.
Narrator: WHATEVER HAPPENS IN AREA 51,
THE EXISTENCE OF THIS BIZARRE CRAFT
IS UNDENIABLE.
JASON MOYER AND JEFF KURTH REMAIN MYSTIFIED
BY THE STRANGE EVENTS OF THAT NIGHT.
EVERY TIME I DRIVE BY THIS GAS STATION,
I THINK ABOUT IT.
EVERY TIME.
IT WAS DEFINITELY A CRAZY NIGHT
TO SEE SOMETHING SO SPECTACULAR.
♪♪
NOW, ONE DAY, THIS IS A NORMAL BEACH,
THE NEXT, IT'S COVERED BY OBJECTS
THAT SCIENTISTS DON'T RECOGNIZE,
AND NO ONE DARES TO TOUCH.
WHAT'S SCARY IS, WE DON'T
KNOW WHERE THIS CAME FROM.
WHO KNOWS WHAT THE
TIDE COULD'VE BROUGHT IN.
IS IT ORGANIC OR SYNTHETIC?
IS IT TOXIC OR NOT?
Narrator: ACCORDING TO ONE THEORY,
THESE BLOBS ARE A FORM OF WEAPON.
THESE THINGS ARE VOLATILE
AND POTENTIALLY EXPLOSIVE AND DANGEROUS.
Narrator: NORTHERN FRANCE...
FAMOUS FOR ITS VAST, PRISTINE BEACHES.
JULY 18, 2017...
LOCAL THOMAS HEMBERGER
STROLLS DOWN THE BEACH,
WHERE HE SEES SOMETHING BIZARRE.
ONE DAY, NOTHING,
AND SUDDENLY, THE YELLOW BLOB INVASION.
Narrator: COUNTLESS THOUSANDS
OF STRANGE YELLOW BLOBS
PEPPER THE SAND OVER A 19-MILE STRETCH.
NO ONE KNOWS WHERE THEY HAVE COME FROM
OR WHAT THEY ARE.
EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS
SUBSTANCE IS BAFFLING.
IS IT MANMADE, IS IT
CHEMICAL, IS IT ORGANIC?
WE HAVE NO IDEA.
I DON'T EVEN KNOW IF IT'S HEALTHY
TO PICK IT UP AND TOUCH IT.
Narrator: THE FOOTAGE REACHES
FORMER ARMY COLONEL DANIEL DAVIS.
HE RECOGNIZES THIS BEACH
AS ONE WHICH PLAYED A CRUCIAL ROLE
IN THE SECOND WORLD WAR
AND WONDERS IF THESE YELLOW BLOBS
COULD BE THE LETHAL
REMAINS OF DEADLY EXPLOSIVES.
THESE FORTIFIED BEACHES,
KNOWN AS THE "ATLANTIC WALL,"
ACTED AS A DIVIDING LINE
BETWEEN NAZI-OCCUPIED EUROPE
AND THE FREE WORLD.
THE ATLANTIC WALL WAS... WAS
GERMANY'S IMPREGNABLE WALL
OF OBSTACLES AND DEFENSIVE CAPABILITIES
THAT WOULD PREVENT THE
WEST FROM ATTACKING THEM.
THE GERMANS STORED HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS
OF TONS OF AMMUNITION HERE,
BECAUSE IT'S THE CLOSEST POINT TO BRITAIN,
WHERE THEY EXPECTED THE ALLIES TO ATTACK.
BUT THE ALLIES INVADED 100
MILES SOUTH IN NORMANDY,
CAUSING THE GERMANS TO ABANDON
THIS MASSIVE WEAPONS CACHE.
LOCALS FEAR THIS AMMUNITION
IS COMING BACK TO HAUNT THEM.
UPWARDS OF 300,000 TONS
OF CONVENTIONAL AND CHEMICAL MUNITIONS
WERE JUST THROWN INTO THE WATER.
IT'S POSSIBLE THAT SOMETHING RUPTURED
AND ONLY NOW, AT 70 YEARS LATER,
IT'S FINALLY COMING TO THE SURFACE
AND MIXING WITH WHO-KNOWS-WHAT.
♪♪
Narrator: HIGHLY COMBUSTIBLE T.N.T.
FORMED THE EXPLOSIVE
BASES OF MOST MUNITIONS
DURING WORLD WAR II.
CHEMIST KEN HANSON BELIEVES
THIS COULD BE WHAT'S
WASHING UP ON THESE BEACHES.
CHEMICALS LIKE T.N.T. ARE VERY EXPLOSIVE.
♪♪
THEY'RE ALSO TYPICALLY A YELLOW COLOR.
Narrator: IT WAS FOUND THAT HANDLING T.N.T.
HAS A DEADLY SIDE EFFECT
WHEN SOMETHING WEIRD STARTED
HAPPENING TO MUNITIONS WORKERS.
THE CANARY GIRLS WERE WOMEN
WHO MADE SHELLS DURING WORLD WAR I.
THEY GOT THEIR NICKNAME
BECAUSE PROLONGED CONTACT WITH T.N.T.
TURNED THEIR SKIN YELLOW.
Narrator: OVER TIME, IT
CAUSED TOXIC JAUNDICE,
KILLING MANY.
♪♪
SINCE THIS IS A PUBLIC
BEACH, THE FIRST CONCERN IS,
ARE THESE SPHERES TOXIC, ARE THEY LETHAL?
THESE BOMBS AND BULLETS AND
THINGS CAN DECOMPOSE OVER TIME.
AND SO DEPENDING ON
WHAT THEY DECOMPOSE INTO,
THEY CAN BE VERY UNSTABLE.
Narrator: COULD THESE SINISTER YELLOW BLOBS
BE EVIDENCE OF A VAST UNDERSEA STORE
OF UNSTABLE AND TOXIC T.N.T.?
ENGINEER MATT KUTCHER IS A PYROTECHNICS
AND WEAPONRY SPECIALIST.
HE THINKS THE YELLOW
BLOBS LOOK TOO DECOMPOSED
TO BE LIVE T.N.T.
INSTEAD, HE SUSPECTS THESE BLOBS ARE T.N.T.
THAT HAS ALREADY EXPLODED UNDERWATER.
TO FIND OUT, HE SETS UP A TEST
TO SEE IF HE CAN USE T.N.T. TO
RECREATE THE YELLOW BLOBS.
I WANT TO FIND OUT
WHETHER OR NOT THESE BLOBS
COULD BE THE REMNANTS OF SOME KIND
OF UNDERWATER EXPLOSION.
Narrator: KUTCHER SETS UP
A REINFORCED PLASTIC TANK
CONTAINING JUST 3 1/2
POUNDS OF EXPLOSIVE T.N.T.,
THEN ADDS 100 GALLONS OF WATER.
THE PLASTIC TANK WILL CAPTURE
ANY DEBRIS FROM THE EXPLOSIVE.
WE'LL BE ABLE TO LOOK AROUND,
LOOK INSIDE OF IT, LOOK AROUND IT,
AND SEE WHAT REMNANTS ARE LEFT OVER.
Narrator: WITH THE DRUM FULL,
IT'S TIME TO TEST THE THEORY.
ALL RIGHT. LET'S GET READY AND DO THIS.
Narrator: THEY WIRE THE EXPLOSIVE CHARGE
INTO THE DETONATION DESK.
♪♪
3... 2... 1... HIT IT!
♪♪
NOW, THAT'S AN EXPLOSION.
Narrator: THE POWERFUL EXPLOSION
SENDS A PLUME OF WATER 90 FEET
INTO THE AIR
AND RIPS THE PLASTIC TANK APART.
LET'S GO SEE WHAT'S LEFT, HUH?
INSIDE THE SHREDDED TANK,
KUTCHER SPOTS A LAYER OF DEBRIS,
BUT IT'S NOT YELLOW.
IT'S JUST THE PLASTIC
CASING FROM THE Primacord.
APART FROM THE PLASTIC WRAPPING
THAT ENCASED THE EXPLOSIVE,
THERE IS NO OTHER RESIDUE IN THE TANK.
EVERYTHING HAS BEEN CONSUMED IN THE BLAST.
Kutcher: WHAT THIS
EXPERIMENT HAS TAUGHT US,
ALTHOUGH COOL TO WATCH,
IT'S CLEARLY NOT WHAT
WASHED UP ON THAT BEACH.
IT MUST'VE BEEN THE
REMNANTS OF SOMETHING ELSE.
♪♪
Narrator: BUT NOW THE INVESTIGATION
TAKES A BIZARRE TWIST.
COULD THESE WEIRD BLOBS
BE SO-CALLED FLOATING GOLD
WORTH MILLIONS OF DOLLARS?
THIS STUFF IS BEAUTIFUL, EXPENSIVE,
AND HAS A REALLY WEIRD ORIGIN STORY.
COMES OUT OF THE BUTT OF A SPERM WHALE.
Narrator: COMING UP,
A CELESTIAL LIGHT WITH A DARK EDGE.
THIS IS THE KIND OF WEAPON THAT
CAN BASICALLY DESTROY ARMIES.
Narrator: SCIENTISTS FEAR
A MONSTROUS MUTATION
IS TURNING DOGS BLUE.
IT HAPPENS TO ONE ANIMAL
AND THEN IT SPREADS OVER TIME.
Narrator: AND INVESTIGATORS
BELIEVE THIS BEACH MIGHT HAVE
STRUCK GOLD... FLOATING GOLD.
THEY'VE HIT THE LOTTERY.
A COUPLE KILOS OF THIS SUBSTANCE
IS WORTH THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS.
♪♪
Narrator: THOUSANDS OF
UNIDENTIFIED YELLOW BLOBS
INVADE A FRENCH BEACH.
LOCALS AND EXPERTS STRUGGLE TO UNDERSTAND
WHAT THEY ARE.
BUT MARINE BIOLOGIST DANNI WASHINGTON KNOWS
ONE SUBSTANCE WHICH LOOKS JUST LIKE IT.
BASED ON THE EVIDENCE,
THE COLOR OF THE SUBSTANCE
LOOKS A LITTLE BIT LIKE AMBERGRIS,
OR FLOATING GOLD.
AMBERGRIS... IT'S BEAUTIFUL, EXPENSIVE,
AND HAS A REALLY WEIRD ORIGIN STORY.
COMES OUT OF THE BUTT OF A SPERM WHALE.
AMBERGRIS IS A BYPRODUCT OF A SPERM WHALE'S
VORACIOUS APPETITE FOR SEAFOOD.
A SPERM WHALE'S DIET PRIMARILY CONSISTS
OF CEPHALOPODS, OR SQUID.
THEY LOVE SQUID.
THE ONLY THING IS, WITH A SQUID,
THEY HAVE A COUPLE OF
HARD PARTS IN THEIR BODY,
INCLUDING THE BEAK.
Narrator: SCIENTISTS CONSIDER SQUID BEAKS
A MARVEL OF BIOLOGICAL ENGINEERING.
SET BETWEEN ITS TENTACLES,
IT'S TOUGHER THAN ANY
KNOWN METAL OR POLYMER.
A BEAK CAN BE AS BIG AS MY FIST.
WHAT THE WHALES DO IS PRODUCE A SUBSTANCE,
KIND OF A WAXY COATING,
THAT COATS OVER ALL THOSE
BEAKS, COMPRESSES IT DOWN,
AND THEN THEY PASS 'EM
RIGHT OUT OF THEIR BODY.
ONCE THE AMBERGRIS, OR FLOATING GOLD,
REACHES THE SURFACE, THE SUN RAYS HIT IT,
EVENTUALLY BLEACHING IT
AND CHANGING ITS COLOR,
WHICH LOOKS VERY SIMILAR
TO THE YELLOW BLOBS SEEN IN THE FOOTAGE.
Narrator: AMBERGRIS PRODUCES
A HIGHLY-PRIZED MUSKY SCENT
THAT PERFUMERS PAY HANDSOMELY FOR.
Washington: IF THIS TOWN HAS
AMBERGRIS ON ITS SHORELINE,
WELL, THEY'VE HIT THE LOTTERY.
A COUPLE KILOS OF THIS SUBSTANCE
IS WORTH THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS.
♪♪
Narrator: BUT CHEMIST KEN HANSON BELIEVES
THE BLOBS ARE SIMPLY TOO
BRIGHT TO BE AMBERGRIS
AND THAT THEIR GARISH YELLOW
COLOR MUST BE MANMADE.
THAT COLOR IS NOT PART
OF THE NATURAL KINGDOM.
♪♪
Narrator: INVESTIGATORS
ANALYZING THE FOOTAGE
LOOK BEYOND THE BEACH,
TO THE SEA, FOR ANSWERS.
THESE BEACHES FLANK THE
BUSIEST SHIPPING ROUTE ON EARTH,
CARRYING ONE-QUARTER
OF ALL THE WORLD'S TRAFFIC.
Rapp: DID IT SPILL OFF SOME SHIP?
KIND OF MAKES ME CONCERNED
THAT THIS COULD BE A PUBLIC HEALTH ISSUE.
Narrator: THE MAN WHO FIRST
CAME ACROSS THE BEACH BLOBS
MUSTERS UP THE COURAGE TO TOUCH ONE.
♪♪
THE BLOBS' TOXIC SMELL AND WAXY TEXTURE
SUGGESTS TO KEN HANSON ANOTHER POSSIBILITY.
COULD THIS BE A SUBSTANCE
KNOWN AS PARAFFIN WAX?
PARAFFIN WAX IS A HYDROPHOBIC MATERIAL,
WHICH MEANS IT BASICALLY DOESN'T LIKE TO BE
IN CONTACT WITH WATER.
AND SO WHEN YOU TAKE LIQUID PARAFFIN WAX
AND YOU THROW IT IN
WATER, IT STARTS TO SOLIDIFY
AND GENERATE THESE YELLOW BLOBS.
WE USE PARAFFIN WAX FOR BEAUTY TREATMENTS,
TO MAKE CANDLES, AND AS A LUBRICANT.
IF IT IS PARAFFIN WAX,
HOW DID SO MUCH OF IT END UP ON THE BEACH?
PARAFFIN IS ALSO A COMPONENT OF CRUDE OIL.
IT CAN CLOG THE STORAGE
TANKS AND HOSES ON TANKERS,
ADDING TO TRANSPORTATION COSTS.
IT'S POSSIBLE THAT SUCH A
LARGE QUANTITY OF THIS STUFF
WASHED UP ON THE BEACH
FROM AN UNSCRUPULOUS CAPTAIN
DUMPING THE STUFF CLOSE TO SHORE.
Narrator: BUT WITH NO OFFICIAL REPORT,
WE CAN STILL ONLY GUESS AS TO THE ORIGIN
OF THESE YELLOW BLOBS AND THEIR LEGACY.
IT MIGHT GET IN, EVEN OUR OWN FOOD,
WORKING ITS WAY UP THE FOOD CHAIN.
♪♪
Narrator: NOW, A BIZARRE
SIGHT THAT DEFIES NATURE.
Moran: THE DOGS ARE ACTUALLY BRIGHT BLUE.
I'VE NEVER SEEN ANY ANIMAL THAT COLOR.
I'VE SEEN BLACK LABS, AND
I'VE SEEN GOLDEN RETRIEVERS,
BUT I HAVEN'T SEEN BLUE MANGY DOGS.
Narrator: INVESTIGATORS FEAR
THESE DOGS ARE UNDERGOING
SOME SORT OF GROTESQUE MUTATION.
GENETIC MUTATIONS THAT
CHANGE COLOR DO HAPPEN.
CHEMICALS CAN DO SOME
REALLY WEIRD THINGS TO ANIMALS.
AND IF IT'S DOING THAT TO THE DOGS,
WHAT IS IT DOING TO THE LOCAL POPULATION?
♪♪
Narrator: MUMBAI, INDIA,
HOME TO THE BOLLYWOOD FILM INDUSTRY,
AND THE 12th WEALTHIEST CITY IN THE WORLD.
♪♪
BUT MUMBAI HAS A DARKER SIDE.
HALF OF THE POPULATION LIVES IN SQUALOR
AND SCAVENGES FOR FOOD,
ALONGSIDE 90,000 STRAY
DOGS IN THIS CITY ALONE.
[ DOGS BARK ]
AUGUST 11, 2017...
LOCALS CAN'T BELIEVE THEIR
EYES, A BRIGHT BLUE DOG.
♪♪
THEN, MORE.
THE SIGHT OF POWDER-BLUE HOUNDS
SHOCKS AND BAFFLES
SCIENTISTS ACROSS THE GLOBE.
WHAT HAS COLORED THESE CANINES?
Narrator: IN HINDU CULTURE,
THE POWDER-BLUE COLOR OF THESE DOGS
IS THE SHADE OF MANY GODS, INCLUDING KALI,
THE GODDESS OF DEATH.
SOME LOCALS FEAR THESE
DOGS' BIZARRE BLUE HUE
IS A PORTENT OF DOOM.
Godfrey: I'M SURE MANY
PEOPLE HAD IN THEIR MINDS,
ARE WE BEING TOLD SOMETHING, IS IT AN OMEN?
SHOULD WE BE TAKING
SPECIAL CARE OF THESE DOGS,
BECAUSE THEY'RE THIS BLUE COLOR?
Narrator: COULD DOGS
HAVE UNKNOWINGLY INHALED
OR INGESTED SOMETHING
THAT'S GIVEN THEM THE BLUES?
SCIENTISTS KNOW OF ONE SUBSTANCE THAT,
IF CONSUMED REGULARLY,
CAN DRAMATICALLY ALTER SKIN COLOR.
USERS SWEAR THAT SILVER
IS GOOD FOR THEIR HEALTH,
PROVIDED IT'S INGESTED IN TINY PARTICLES,
KNOWN AS COLLOIDAL SILVER.
MEDICAL STUDIES HAVE FOUND NO BENEFITS.
THERE'S A NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO BELIEVE THAT
IF YOU EAT COLLOIDAL SILVER,
OR DRINK COLLOIDAL SILVER,
IT'LL HELP TREAT DISEASES
AND PREVENT DISEASES.
Narrator: IN 2007,
REPORTS REVEAL THAT
PAUL KARASON FROM OREGON,
TURNED BLUE AFTER TAKING COLLOIDAL SILVER
AS A HEALTH SUPPLEMENT
FOR MORE THAN A DECADE.
HE WOULD DRINK SILVER
IONS IN WATER EVERY DAY.
I'M NOT SURE IF IT IMPROVED
HIS HEALTH OR NOT,
BUT IT CERTAINLY TURNED HIS SKIN BLUE...
SERIOUSLY BLUE.
OTHERS, LIKE MONTANA POLITICIAN
STAN JONES, FOLLOW SUIT.
SILVER HAS ANTIBACTERIAL PROPERTIES
AND FEATURED IN OVER-THE-COUNTER MEDICINES,
UNTIL 1999.
THE F.D.A. BANNED IT, BECAUSE OF ITS
SKIN DISCOLORATION SIDE EFFECTS.
IT ENDS UP GOING THROUGH THE BODY,
THROUGH THE BLOODSTREAM, AND, ULTIMATELY,
ENDS UP IN THE SKIN,
WHICH IS WHY WE SEE THE BLUE COLORATION.
COULD IT BE POSSIBLE THAT THESE DOGS
FOUND A PUDDLE FULL OF COLLOIDAL SILVER?
Narrator: THE HISTORIC
ZAVERI BAZAR IN MUMBAI
BOASTS 30,000 ARTISANS CRAFTING JEWELRY,
OFTEN ON THE STREETS,
BUT THE LOW-TECH MELTING
AND MOLDING OF SILVER CAN LEAVE RESIDUE.
Samuel: THEY DON'T
REALLY EVEN NEED TO EAT IT.
IF WE HAVE A BUNCH OF
SILVER PARTICLES IN THE AIR,
COULD THAT GET INTO THEIR SKIN
AND COULD THAT BE
CAUSING WHAT WE'RE SEEING?
Narrator: BUT JOURNALIST
JOSHUA RAPP SPOTS A FLAW
IN COMPARING THE COLOR OF THESE DOGS
TO SILVER-INDUCED BLUE HUMAN SKIN,
LIKE THAT OF PAUL KARASON'S.
Rapp: THE THING ABOUT KARASON IS,
HIS HAIR REMAINS UNAFFECTED.
WITH THESE DOGS, IT'S JUST THE OPPOSITE,
IT'S THEIR HAIR THAT'S BLUE.
I DON'T THINK THESE DOGS INGESTED SILVER.
♪♪
Narrator: EX-CIA AGENT LINDSAY MORAN
ANALYZES THE FOOTAGE OF
THE BLUE DOGS FRAME-BY-FRAME
AND SPOTS A CLUE IN THE BACKGROUND.
WHEN YOU SEE MORE OF THE VIDEO,
YOU REALIZE THAT THESE DOGS ARE LOCATED IN,
ESSENTIALLY, AN INDUSTRIAL ZONE.
IT CERTAINLY APPEARS LIKE
POLLUTION HAS CAUSED THIS
AND, WITHOUT A DOUBT,
THIS HAS GOT TO BE HARMFUL.
Narrator: COMING UP, A
DEATH-RAY TARGETING EARTH
BAFFLES INVESTIGATORS.
YOU HAVE THIS MASSIVE BEAM OF LIGHT.
IF IT'S NOT THE SUN,
THEN WHAT THE HECK IS IT?
Narrator: TERROR FOR TOURISTS,
WHEN TREES GO ON THE ATTACK.
THERE'S TREES EVERYWHERE.
THERE'S NOWHERE TO RUN.
Narrator: AND EXPERTS FEAR A
FRANKENSTEIN-LIKE MUTATION
IS TURNING THESE DOGS BLUE.
[ DOGS BARK ]
Narrator: BLUE DOGS ROAM
THE STREETS OF MUMBAI, INDIA,
ALARMING EXPERTS.
THE IMAGES ARE SENT TO
MUMBAI CITY AUTHORITIES
FOR ANALYSIS.
THEY CONFIRM THAT THE
DOGS WERE FILMED IN TALOJA,
AN INDUSTRIAL HUB ON
THE OUTSKIRTS OF MUMBAI,
AND HOME TO ALMOST
1,000 PHARMACEUTICAL
AND CHEMICAL FACTORIES.
THIS WASTE MUST BE THE TRIGGER
THAT'S TURNING THESE DOGS BLUE.
NUMBER ONE, WHAT CHEMICALS ARE THEY,
AND NUMBER TWO, ARE
THESE DOGS NOW IN DANGER?
CHEMICALS CAN DO SOME
REALLY WEIRD THINGS TO ANIMALS.
MAKES DOGS ACT ERRATICALLY AND VICIOUSLY.
SO, COULD IT HAVE AFFECTED LIFE DOWN THERE
AND CAUSED MUTATIONS
THAT SPAWNED THIS THING
THAT WE'RE SEEING?
Moran: AND IF IT'S DOING THAT TO THE DOGS,
WHAT IS IT DOING TO THE LOCAL POPULATION?
Narrator: THE AUTHORITIES
TRACE BLUE TEXTILE DYE
IN THE LOCAL RIVER TO A NEARBY PLANT,
WHICH THEY SHUT DOWN.
THEY CLEAN UP THE DOGS,
WHO SHOW NO ILL EFFECTS.
BUT MANY REMAIN FEARFUL THAT KALI,
THE GODDESS OF DEATH,
HAS ISSUED A DIRE WARNING.
♪♪
NOW, SUNLIGHT,
BUT IT'S GOING IN THE WRONG DIRECTION.
WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON HERE?
Narrator: SOME BELIEVE IT'S A MIRACLE
OR MESSAGE FROM GOD.
THIS ABSOLUTELY LOOKS BIBLICAL.
OTHERS FEAR A "STAR WARS" DEATH-RAY
CONNECTED WITH THE NAZIS.
THIS IS THE KIND OF WEAPON
THAT COULD BURN WHOLE CITIES TO THE GROUND.
♪♪
DECEMBER 29, 2015...
IN THE CITY OF SALTA, NORTHWEST ARGENTINA,
ALL EYES LOOK TO THE SKY.
♪♪
AND WHAT'S COOL ABOUT THIS VIDEO,
IS IT'S KIND OF BACKWARDS
FROM WHAT WE USUALLY SEE.
BEAUTIFUL RAYS OF LIGHT
SHOOTING UP FROM THE GROUND,
TO THE SKY.
Narrator: WHAT IS THE SOURCE
OF THIS MASSIVE AND INTENSE BEAM OF LIGHT?
AT FIRST, EXPERTS ASSUME
IT'S THE SUN SHINING BELOW THE HORIZON,
UNTIL THE CAMERA TURNS
TO REVEAL THE SUN IN THE SKY,
BEHIND A THICK LAYER OF CLOUDS.
YOU HAVE THIS MASSIVE BEAM OF LIGHT.
IF IT'S NOT THE SUN,
THEN WHAT THE HECK IS IT?
Narrator: MILITARY ANALYST
CARLO MUñOZ CAN'T THINK
OF ANYTHING GROUND-BASED
THAT COULD CREATE SUCH AN INTENSE LIGHT.
HE BELIEVES IT'S COMING FROM OUTER SPACE
AND IS MORE CONCENTRATED AT THE HORIZON
FOR A CHILLING REASON.
YOU HAVE THIS CONCENTRATED BEAM OF LIGHT
COMING STRAIGHT FROM THE SKY
ONTO SOME UNKNOWN TARGET ONTO THE GROUND.
WHATEVER IT IS, IT'S NOT VERY GOOD.
MUñOZ FEARS THIS IS A "STAR WARS" WEAPON
IN OUTER SPACE
AND THE BRAIN CHILD OF
HISTORY'S MOST EVIL REGIME.
THIS MAKES ME THINK OF A PROGRAM
THAT WAS BEING RUN BY NAZI GERMANY,
WHO HAD ACTUALLY COME
UP WITH A CRAZY IDEA...
A MASSIVE SUN GUN.
♪♪
Narrator: COMING UP,
INVESTIGATORS FEAR A FOREST IS IN MELTDOWN.
IMAGINE EVERY LEAF, EVERY TWIG,
JUST BEING EVENTUALLY
BURNED AND DISSOLVED AWAY.
Narrator: AND HAS SOMEONE FINALLY PERFECTED
THE NAZI'S MOST DEVASTATING WEAPON DESIGN?
Narrator: A SYRIAN SINISTER RAY OF LIGHT
BLASTS THE HORIZON IN ARGENTINA.
MANY NAZI SCIENTISTS FOUND
REFUGE HERE AFTER THE WAR
AND SOME OF THEM CONTINUED
TO WORK ON EVIL PROJECTS.
THE NAZIS WERE LOOKING FOR
ANY BATTLEFIELD ADVANTAGE
THEY CAN GET OVER THEIR ENEMIES.
GERMAN SCIENTIST HERMANN OBERTH,
HE HAD ACTUALLY COME
UP WITH A CRAZY IDEA...
A MASSIVE SUN GUN.
♪♪
Narrator: OBERTH PLANNED
TO LAUNCH A PARABOLIC DISH,
MEASURING 3-SQUARE-MILES,
OR 1,000 FOOTBALL FIELDS,
ABOVE THE EARTH ON A SATELLITE
TO DIRECT THE SUN'S RAYS
ONTO A SPECIFIC POINT ON EARTH.
OBERTH PREDICTED THAT HIS SUN GUN
COULD BOIL SECTIONS OF THE
OCEAN AND TORCH ENTIRE CITIES.
IT CAN FOCUS A TREMENDOUS
AMOUNT OF LIGHT AND HEAT
ON A PARTICULAR TARGET ON THE GROUND,
FROM SPACE.
AFTER THE END OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR,
MANY NAZI SCIENTISTS CARRIED
ON THEIR EXPERIMENTAL WORK,
SOME OF IT FUNDED BY THE U.S. GOVERNMENT.
♪♪
NOW, THIS STRANGE FOOTAGE OF
AN INTENSE BEAM ABOVE ARGENTINA.
THIS IS THE KIND OF WEAPON THAT
CAN BASICALLY DESTROY ARMIES,
BURN WHOLE CITIES TO THE GROUND,
WITH AN IMMENSE AMOUNT OF LIGHT AND HEAT
DIRECTED ON A PARTICULAR TARGET.
AND WHAT IT MIGHT LOOK LIKE
IS WHAT WE'RE SEEING IN THIS VIDEO.
Narrator: THE SUN GUN
WOULD CERTAINLY EXPLAIN
WHY THIS LIGHT RAY GETS MORE INTENSE
THE CLOSER IT IS TO THE GROUND
AND THE FACT IT DOESN'T APPEAR
TO COME DIRECTLY FROM THE SUN,
BUT COULD A PARABOLIC MIRROR
REALLY BE CONVERTED INTO A LETHAL WEAPON?
TO EXPLORE THE POWER OF SUCH A DEVICE,
ENGINEER MATT KUTCHER
SETS UP AN EXPERIMENT.
Kutcher: WE ALL HAVE AN IDEA OF
HOW POWERFUL THE SUN CAN BE,
BUT IF IT'S SINGULARLY DIRECTED,
WHAT DAMAGE CAN IT REALLY
CAUSE, WHAT CAN IT DO?
♪♪
Narrator: SUNLIGHT CONSISTS
OF 54% INFRARED RAYS,
WHICH THE PARABOLIC MIRROR
FOCUSES INTO A SINGLE HOT SPOT.
KUTCHER AND COLLEAGUE CHRIS REYNOLDS
USE A SMOKE MACHINE
TO LOCATE THE EXACT POINT
WHERE THE DEFLECTED LIGHT RAYS
CONVERGE INTO A SINGLE WHITE HOT SPOT.
THERE IT IS THERE, YEAH.
OH, THERE YOU GO.
THAT'S SWEET, RIGHT? CAN YOU SEE IT?
LET'S SEE WHAT THIS CAN GENERATE.
KUTCHER'S DISH HAS A
SURFACE AREA OF 5-SQUARE-FEET,
FOCUSING 1,800 WATTS OF
ENERGY INTO A SINGLE POINT.
THE HEAT GENERATED BY THE DISH
COULD BOIL A HALF-PINT OF
WATER IN ABOUT 20 SECONDS.
A DEVICE THE SIZE OF 1,000 FOOTBALL FIELDS
COULD CREATE 30 BILLION WATTS,
THE EQUIVALENT OF 52
NUCLEAR POWER STATIONS.
I MEAN, IT'S KIND OF
AMAZING. YOU COULD TAKE A...
A DISH THAT ONE PERSON CAN CARRY,
IN A DISH THIS SMALL, THAT
COULD CREATE SO MUCH ENERGY
THAT IT LIGHTS A PIECE OF WOOD ON FIRE.
I MEAN, THAT'S A FOCUSED AMOUNT OF ENERGY.
SEEMS LIKE YOU COULD
MAKE A WEAPON OUT OF IT.
BUT IF THIS CONCENTRATED
BEAM OF LIGHT IN ARGENTINA
IS A WHITE-HOT DEATH-RAY,
BY NOW, WE'D BE SEEING
IT'S CATASTROPHIC EFFECTS.
METEOROLOGIST ANGELA FRITZ
BELIEVES WHAT WE'RE
SEEING MAY NOT BE MANMADE,
BUT INSTEAD, A RARE ATMOSPHERIC EVENT.
THIS IS AN AWESOME EXAMPLE
OF SOMETHING THAT IS AN OPTICAL PHENOMENON
THAT IS ONE OF MY FAVORITES.
IT'S CALLED ANTICREPUSCULAR RAYS.
Narrator: AN ANTICREPUSCULAR LIGHT RAY
APPEARS TO COME FROM THE GROUND,
BUT IS A RARE SPECTACLE.
IT OCCURS WHEN CLOUDS ACT LIKE A FUNNEL
AND FOCUS SUNBEAMS
ONTO A CONCENTRATED POINT
ON THE EARTH'S SURFACE.
IF THE CLOUDS ARE SITUATED
IN A VERY PARTICULAR WAY,
YOU CAN GET THAT LIGHT TO CONVERGE IN
ON A POINT ON THE HORIZON.
AND SO IT'S... IT'S REALLY
AN OPTICAL ILLUSION,
THAT THE SOURCE OF THE
LIGHT IS... IS THE HORIZON,
BUT REALLY, IT'S THE SUN.
I DID NOT EXPECT SUCH AN INCREDIBLE EXAMPLE
OF THIS ATMOSPHERIC PHENOMENON.
IT'S TRULY AMAZING.
Narrator: NOW, A PLEASURE
DRIVE IN THE MOUNTAINS
ENDS IN DISASTER.
ALL HELL BREAKS LOOSE.
Narrator: TOURISTS ARE
CRUSHED IN THEIR CAR.
THE FOREST STARTS TO
COLLAPSE ALL AROUND THEM...
BEHIND THEM, IN FRONT
OF THEM, ON TOP OF THEM.
THERE'S NOWHERE TO RUN.
THERE'S TREES EVERYWHERE.
Narrator: THIS ATTACK OF THE TREES
BAFFLES EXPERTS.
I'VE NEVER SEEN THIS MANY
TREES FALLING ALL AT ONCE,
IN UNISON.
Narrator: HAVE THESE
HUMAN INTRUDERS ANGERED
AN ANCIENT FOREST SPIRIT?
SLOVAKIA, EUROPE...
AMONG THESE FORESTS ARE THE STRANGEST,
MOST TERRIFYING AND
FORBIDDING MEDIEVAL CASTLES.
ONE OF THEM, CACHTICE CASTLE,
IS THE SEAT OF A BLOOD-THIRSTY NOBLEWOMAN,
WHO BECAME KNOWN TO LEGEND
AS THE COUNTESS DRACULA.
MAY 2014, A RUSSIAN COUPLE ON VACATION
EXPLORE THE TREE-COVERED MOUNTAINS.
BUT THEN, SOMETHING STIRS IN
THE DENSE AND ANCIENT WOODS.
THE FOREST ATTACKS.
THEY REVERSE TO ESCAPE THE CARNAGE,
ONLY FOR TREES TO FALL BEHIND THEIR VAN,
TRAPPING THEM.
EACH OF THE TREES WEIGHS
AROUND 2,000 POUNDS,
ABOUT AS MUCH AS TWO GRAND PIANOS.
AFTER THEIR MIRACULOUS ESCAPE,
THEY POST THE FOOTAGE ONLINE.
THE TREES COME DOWN ALMOST LIKE DOMINOS.
Kourounis: IT'S LIKE SOMEONE
HIT THE SELF-DESTRUCT BUTTON
ON THE FOREST.
Fritz: IT'S VERY STRANGE
THAT THEY'RE JUST FALLING,
SEEMINGLY OUT OF NOWHERE,
AT THIS EXACT MOMENT.
Narrator: IN THE HOMELAND
OF COUNTESS DRACULA,
TREES GO ON THE ATTACK.
♪♪
TREES DON'T NORMALLY
JUST FALL ON THEIR OWN.
Narrator: INVESTIGATORS STRUGGLE
TO WORK OUT WHY SO MANY TREES
TOPPLE OVER.
♪♪
BENEATH THE BEAUTY OF THE CARPATHIANS
LIE ANCIENT HORRORS.
LEGEND GOES, THAT COUNTESS DRACULA
KILLED OVER 650 PEASANT
WOMEN AND BATHED IN THEIR BLOOD.
BUT FOLKLORISTS KNOW THAT IT'S NOT VAMPIRES
THAT THE LOCALS FEAR THE MOST.
Monteith: LESHY IS THE
PROTECTOR OF THE FOREST
AND IF YOU DISRESPECT HIS TERRITORY,
HE'S COMING AFTER YOU.
Narrator: LESHY THE TREE THROWER,
IS FEARED ACROSS EASTERN EUROPE
FOR STEALING CHILDREN AND KILLING HUMANS
WHO WANDER INTO THE WOODS.
HE USES NATURE ITSELF AS A WEAPON
AGAINST THOSE WHO ANGER HIM.
IT DOESN'T SURPRISE ME THAT LESHY IS MAD.
THEY'VE PUT A ROAD RIGHT THROUGH HIS FOREST
AND THEY CUT DOWN HIS TREES.
IF IT WAS MY LAND, I'D BE MAD.
♪♪
Narrator: THE FOOTAGE REACHES
ATMOSPHERIC SCIENTIST CHRIS WALCEK.
HE LOCATES THE INCIDENT
IN THE NORTHERN CARPATHIANS OF SLOVAKIA,
WHICH LEADS HIM TO A FRESH THEORY.
SLOVAKIA LIES IN THE BLACK TRIANGLE
OF POLLUTION OF CENTRAL EUROPE.
Narrator: THE BLACK TRIANGLE
LIES BEHIND THE OLD IRON CURTAIN.
IN THE 1940s, SOVIET FORCES BUILT
SO MANY COAL-BURNING,
CHEMICAL, AND STEEL PLANTS HERE,
THAT IT UNLEASHED A MASS
KILLER FROM THE SKIES, ACID RAIN.
Kourounis: ACID RAIN...
IT'S BAD FOR EVERYTHING.
I'VE EXPERIENCED ACID
RAIN THAT'S BEEN SO STRONG,
THAT IT HAS BURNED MY
EYES AND STUNG MY SKIN
AND CORRODED ANYTHING METAL.
Narrator: OVER DECADES,
ACID RAIN KILLS THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE
AND 80% OF THE REGION'S FORESTS.
♪♪
Kourounis: ALMOST NOTHING CAN LIVE IN THESE
DENSE, ACID RAIN ENVIRONMENTS.
IMAGINE, JUST EVERY LEAF, EVERY TWIG,
JUST BEING EVENTUALLY
BURNED AND DISSOLVED AWAY.
♪♪
Narrator: BUT COMMUNIST
RUSSIA COLLAPSED DECADES AGO
AND WHEN KOUROUNIS EXAMINES THE FOOTAGE
FOR TELL-TALE SIGNS OF TOXIC ACID RAIN,
THERE ARE NONE.
TAKING ANOTHER LOOK AT THE VIDEO,
THE LEAVES ARE NOT REALLY SCORCHED,
THERE'S NO EVIDENCE OF LONG-TERM EXPOSURE
TO TREMENDOUS AMOUNTS OF ACID RAIN,
AND IT REALLY WOULDN'T
AFFECT THE ROOTS SO MUCH,
THAT AN ENTIRE FOREST WOULD
COME DOWN THAT QUICKLY.
THERE'S MORE AT PLAY HERE.
METEOROLOGIST ANGELA FRITZ
CHECKS THE WEATHER RECORDS FOR 2014
AND COMES UP WITH A FRESH THEORY.
SHE DISCOVERS THAT
PRIOR TO THE TREE COLLAPSE,
THE AREA SUFFERS EIGHT
DAYS OF THE HEAVIEST RAINFALL
SINCE RECORDS BEGAN.
MAYBE THE RAIN HAD
SOMETHING TO DO WITH THIS.
THEY'RE DRIVING ON A SLOPE,
THEY'RE ALL FALLING IN THE SAME DIRECTION.
IT... IT DOES MAKE ME WONDER.
Narrator: ANALYZING THE FOOTAGE,
GEORGE KOUROUNIS SEES THAT
THE TREES POSITION ON A STEEP SLOPE
MAKES THEM PARTICULARLY
VULNERABLE TO WATER.
THE WEIGHT AND THE MASS OF
THAT TREE BEING ANCHORED IN PLACE,
JUST BY THE MUD, IS NOT MUCH AT ALL.
SO, WHEN THAT SOIL BECOMES REALLY SATURATED
BY FLOODING RAINS OVER MANY DAYS,
SUDDENLY, THE ROOT SYSTEM IS INEFFECTIVE,
AND GRAVITY TAKES OVER.
♪♪
Narrator: EXPERTS AGREE
THE MOST LIKELY EXPLANATION
IS THAT WATER-LOGGED SOIL
DISLODGED ALL THE TREES AT ONCE.
HOWEVER, THE COUPLE WHO
NARROWLY ESCAPED DEATH THAT DAY
REMAIN CONVINCED THAT IT WAS
THE WRATH OF THE FOREST GODS.
♪♪
BILLION 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.
[ PEOPLE SCREAMING ]
Narrator: COMING UP...
OUTSIDE AREA 51, UNDER HEAVY POLICE ESCORT,
IN THE WEE HOURS OF THE MORNING.
OH, MY HEART WAS RACING.
THERE WAS COPS EVERYWHERE.
I WAS REALLY SCARED TO
ACTUALLY TAKE THE VIDEO.
THIS IS THE CLOSEST I'VE SEEN
TO WHAT WE ACTUALLY IMAGINE
A FLYING SAUCER LOOKS LIKE.
Narrator: IN THE LAND OF COUNTESS DRACULA,
SOMETHING IS STIRRING.
IT'S LIKE SOMEONE HIT
THE SELF-DESTRUCT BUTTON
ON THE FOREST.
Narrator: AND ENGINEER MATT
KUTCHER BLOWS UP T.N.T.
TO INVESTIGATE POTENTIALLY LETHAL,
UNIDENTIFIED YELLOW BLOBS.
IS IT MANMADE, IS IT
CHEMICAL, IS IT ORGANIC?
WE HAVE NO IDEA.
Narrator: BIZARRE PHENOMENA.
MYSTERIES CAUGHT ON CAMERA.
WHAT'S THE TRUTH BEHIND
THIS STRANGE EVIDENCE?
TWO LOCAL MEN OVERHEAR A COP TALKING
AND HOURS LATER, THEY CAPTURE THIS FOOTAGE.
THAT'S A SPACESHIP.
IT WAS A CIRCLE SHAPE
WITH A WHITE TARP COVERING THE THING.
IT LOOKS LIKE SOMETHING FROM ANOTHER WORLD.
♪♪
Narrator: HAS AREA 51 FINALLY BEEN EXPOSED?
THERE WAS COPS EVERYWHERE.
I WAS REALLY SCARED.
THIS HAS "TOP SECRET"
WRITTEN ALL OVER IT.
♪♪
Narrator: THE MOJAVE DESERT
IN CALIFORNIA STRETCHES
ALMOST 50,000-SQUARE-MILES
FROM L.A. TO NEVADA.
DEEP IN THIS ARID WASTELAND
LIES EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE
AND ITS HIGHLY CLASSIFIED
CENTER FOR BLACK OP TESTS,
AREA 51.
Kurth: IT'S PRETTY STRANGE.
IT'S A LOT OF DESERT, LOT OF OPEN SPACE.
THERE'S NOT A LOT OF PEOPLE.
Narrator: MAY 30, 2012, LATE EVENING...
FRIENDS JEFF KURTH AND JASON MOYER
STOP AT A GAS STATION
ABOUT 20 MILES FROM EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE.
I OVERHEARD THESE TWO
HIGHWAY PATROL OFFICERS TALKING.
THEY WERE REAL SECRETIVE.
AND THEY SAID THEY HAD
TO MOVE SOMETHING AT 1:30.
AND IT WAS VERY SUSPICIOUS.
WHAT WERE THEY MOVING
AT 1:30 IN THE MORNING?
Narrator: THE FRIENDS PARK
AT A SAFE DISTANCE FROM THE ROAD,
TURN OFF THE LIGHTS, LIE LOW, AND WAIT.
AT 2:00 A.M., IN THE DEAD OF NIGHT,
A MASSIVE SECURITY PRESENCE
SUDDENLY SHOWS ITSELF.
I DID NOT WANT TO GET CAUGHT
WITH... WITH THE CAMERAS.
OH, MY HEART WAS RACING.
THERE WAS COPS EVERYWHERE.
I WAS REALLY SCARED TO
ACTUALLY TAKE THE VIDEO.
Narrator: BUT NOT AS SCARED
AS THEY FEEL WHEN THEY SEE
WHAT THESE COPS ARE ESCORTING.
♪♪
THAT'S A SPACESHIP.
NEVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE THAT.
IT WAS OBVIOUSLY SOMETHING
THAT WAS UNDER THE
CONTROL OF THE GOVERNMENT.
THIS INCIDENT TAKES PLACE
OUTSIDE THE PERIMETER OF AREA 51.
JEFF HAS HIS OWN THEORY.
SOMETHING CRASHED,
AND THEY'RE TRANSPORTING
IT TO ANOTHER BASE.
THE FOOTAGE AMAZES EXPERTS.
IT'S THE DEAD OF NIGHT.
THERE'S A POLICE CONVOY.
WHAT EXACTLY IS ON THE BACK OF THIS TRUCK?
THIS IS A CLOSE ENCOUNTER OF A WEIRD KIND.
Moran: THAT BIG SECURITY PRESENCE...
THEY CLEARLY DON'T WANT ANYONE
GETTING TOO CLOSE TO THIS THING.
THE FOOTAGE REACHES LINDSAY MORAN.
AS AN EX-CIA UNDERCOVER OPERATIVE,
SHE HAS DIRECT EXPERIENCE
OF TOP-LEVEL COVER-UPS.
FOR DECADES, CONSPIRACY THEORISTS
HERE IN THE UNITED STATES
HAVE THOUGHT THAT THE U.S. GOVERNMENT
DOES POSSESS ALIEN TECHNOLOGY.
Narrator: BELIEVERS INSIST
THIS ALIEN TECHNOLOGY
MUST BE STORED AT THE MILITARY'S
MOST SECRET INSTALLATION,
AREA 51.
BUT UNTIL 2013, THE U.S. MILITARY
REFUSED TO ACKNOWLEDGE
THAT AREA 51 EVEN EXISTS.
THE TIMING OF THIS
VIDEO IS KIND OF CURIOUS,
BECAUSE THIS WAS IN 2012.
A FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT REQUEST
REVEALED ON THE 23rd OF JUNE, 2013,
THAT EDWARDS AIR FORCE
BASE ALSO CONTROLS AREA 51.
IF THE GOVERNMENT KNEW THEY
WERE GOING TO HAVE TO REVEAL
THE EXISTENCE AND LOCATION OF AREA 51
AND THEY DID HAVE ALIEN TECHNOLOGY THERE,
IT STANDS TO REASON
THAT THIS MIGHT BE THE
IDEAL TIME TO MOVE IT.
♪♪
Narrator: WHATEVER THE NATURE
AND ORIGIN OF THIS OBJECT,
WHY IS IT BEING MOVED WITH A POLICE CONVOY
IN THE DEAD OF NIGHT?
TO MOVE SOMETHING THAT
SECRET, RIGHT OUT IN THE OPEN,
ON THE BACK OF A TRUCK, IT'S JUST SEEMS...
IT JUST SEEMS PREPOSTEROUS.
Narrator: WAS THIS AN
EMERGENCY OF SOME SORT?
DID SOMETHING GO WRONG ON THE AREA 51 BASE?
♪♪
ONE PERSISTENT THEORY ABOUT AREA 51
IS THAT GOVERNMENT AGENCIES
DELIBERATELY FOSTERED RUMORS
OF EXTRATERRESTRIAL CRAFT
IN ORDER TO CONCEAL THEIR
OWN EXPERIMENTAL AIRCRAFT.
THIS IS THE CLOSEST I'VE SEEN
TO WHAT WE ACTUALLY IMAGINE
A FLYING SAUCER LOOKS LIKE,
FROM ALL OF THE SCIENCE FICTION MOVIES.
IF THE PUBLIC IS BELIEVING
THAT THERE'S A UFO
OR SOME KIND OF ALIEN TECHNOLOGY,
IT MIGHT DIVERT THE PUBLIC'S ATTENTION
FROM SOME CONTROVERSIAL
TOP-SECRET TECHNOLOGY
THAT THE GOVERNMENT DOESN'T
WANT THE PUBLIC TALKING ABOUT.
Narrator: DOES THE LACK OF A TARP SUGGEST
THAT THE AGENCY THAT RUNS AREA 51
INTENDS FOR THIS CRAFT TO BE SEEN?
♪♪
DECLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS
REVEAL HOW, IN THE 1980s,
UFO HUNTER PAUL BENNEWITZ
STUMBLED ACROSS A BLACK OPS PROJECT,
JUST LIKE KURTH AND MOYER.
WHEN IT WAS FEARED THAT BENNEWITZ
WAS ABOUT TO EXPOSE A
TOP-SECRET STEALTH HELICOPTER,
HE WAS THE TARGET OF A
SO-CALLED "MISDIRECTION OPERATION."
AIR FORCE AGENT RICHARD DOTY
ACTUALLY FED BENNEWITZ FAKE DOCUMENTS
THAT PROVED AN ALIEN INVASION WAS IMMINENT.
BENNEWITZ BELIEVED THESE
DOCUMENTS TO BE TRUE
AND RAN WITH THE STORY,
TELLING THE ENTIRE UFO COMMUNITY
THAT AN INVASION WAS COMING.
[ SIREN WAILS ]
Narrator: THE PLAN WORKED,
DIVERTING BENNEWITZ AWAY
FROM THE TOP-SECRET PROGRAM
AND TOWARDS A MENTAL BREAKDOWN.
BENNEWITZ BECAME OBSESSED
WITH THE IDEA OF AN
IMMINENT ALIEN INVASION,
AND THE IDEA ACTUALLY
ENDED UP DRIVING HIM MAD.
HE HAD TO BE INSTITUTIONALIZED,
AND HE LOST ALL CREDIBILITY.
THIS WAS A TEXTBOOK EXAMPLE OF MISDIRECTION
BY THE AIR FORCE.
Narrator: ARE KURTH AND MOYER
THE LATEST INNOCENT PAWNS
IN ANOTHER SINISTER GOVERNMENT PROGRAM
OF MISDIRECTION?
THEY REALLY DON'T CARE ABOUT THE WELL-BEING
OF INDIVIDUALS CAUGHT UP IN THESE STORIES.
NOW, YOU HAVE TO WONDER
WHETHER OR NOT THESE TWO WITNESSES
ARE BEING USED IN THE SAME WAY.
Narrator: BUT KURTH AND MOYER
ARE CONVINCED OF WHAT THEY SAW.
I REALLY BELIEVE THAT THE GOVERNMENT
HAS ALIEN TECHNOLOGY
AND THEY'VE REVERSE-ENGINEERED CRAFTS.
THERE'S EXTRATERRESTRIAL LIFE OUT THERE,
OTHER THAN US.
WHATEVER ITS ORIGIN, A
MILITARY ANALYST EXAMINES
THE SHAPE OF THE CRAFT
FOR ADDITIONAL CLUES.
THERE ARE NOTICEABLE FLAT SECTIONS
ON THE SIDE OF THE OBJECT,
WHICH IS WHERE YOU COULD ATTACH WINGS.
IT'S NOT UNCOMMON FOR WINGS
TO BE REMOVED OR FOLDED OVER ON AN AIRCRAFT
TO MAKE IT EASIER TO TRANSPORT.
SO, I THINK WHAT WE HAVE
HERE IS SOMETHING WITH WINGS.
Narrator: BUT WINGS OR NO WINGS,
THERE'S SOMETHING NOT RIGHT
ABOUT THIS MYSTERY CRAFT.
THE PROFILE OF THIS
OBJECT DOESN'T MATCH ANY
OF THE COMBAT DRONES
CURRENTLY IN FLIGHT RIGHT NOW.
AND THAT IS A PRETTY SCARY PROPOSITION.
Narrator: COMING UP, EX-DOGS.
IS THERE A GENETIC MUTATION
TURNING THESE DOGS BLUE
AND COULD IT BE PASSED ON TO A HUMAN?
IT CERTAINLY TURNED HIS SKIN BLUE...
SERIOUSLY BLUE.
Narrator: EXPLODING TOXIC ALIEN BLOBS.
♪♪
AND A CRAFT CONTROLLED
BY NON-HUMAN INTELLIGENCE.
Narrator: IN CALIFORNIA, TWO
LOCALS CAPTURE FOOTAGE
OF AN UNIDENTIFIED CRAFT
BEING ESCORTED IN THE DEAD OF NIGHT,
CLOSE TO AREA 51.
THAT THING HAD NO VISIBLE ENGINES OR MOTORS
OF ANY TECHNOLOGY THAT
WE CURRENTLY POSSESS.
MILITARY ANALYST CARLO MUñOZ WONDERS
IF THIS MIGHT BE SOMETHING
NEW IN THE U.S. ARSENAL
THAT'S CONTROLLED BY
NON-HUMAN INTELLIGENCE.
WHAT IT DOES LOOK LIKE IS
SOMETHING THAT WAS TESTED
BY THE U.S. NAVY IN 2011.
AND THAT WAS NORTHROP
GRUMMAN'S X-47B CARRIER DRONE...
MINUS ITS SWINGS.
♪♪
Narrator: WHEN MUNOZ COMPARES BOTH IMAGES,
HE'S LEFT WITHOUT A DOUBT
THAT THE CRAFT ON THE BACK OF THE TRUCK
IS THE X-47B DRONE.
THE X-47B LAUNCHES DRONE TECHNOLOGY
INTO A NEW ERA.
UNLIKE THE PREDATOR,
THIS DOESN'T NEED A GROUND-BASED PILOT.
IT'S AUTONOMOUS AND INTELLIGENT.
SMART ENOUGH TO LAND
ON AN AIRCRAFT CARRIER,
TOUGH ENOUGH TO SURVIVE AT SEA,
AND HAVE A BIG ENOUGH
BOMB BAY TO DROP WEAPONS.
THIS ROBOTIC AIRCRAFT MAKES
SCIENCE FICTION A REALITY,
AN A.I. KILLER STALKING THE SKIES,
ABLE TO TERMINATE TARGETS
WITHOUT A HUMAN HANDLER.
BUT THE INVENTION OF A NEW GENERATION
OF ARTIFICIALLY INTELLIGENT KILLER ROBOTS
BRINGS A FUTURE, WHICH MANY PEOPLE DREAD,
CLOSER TO REALITY.
Muñoz: YOU DON'T HAVE A
PERSON BEHIND THE CONTROLS,
SO IF THE PROGRAM WITHIN
THE DRONE SOMEHOW MESSES UP,
YOU COULD HAVE A CATASTROPHE ON YOUR HANDS.
THEY CAN BE HACKED BY THE ENEMY.
ONCE THE ENEMY TAKES
CONTROL OF THAT AIRCRAFT,
IT CAN BASICALLY DO
WHATEVER IT WANTS WITH IT.
Narrator: WHATEVER HAPPENS IN AREA 51,
THE EXISTENCE OF THIS BIZARRE CRAFT
IS UNDENIABLE.
JASON MOYER AND JEFF KURTH REMAIN MYSTIFIED
BY THE STRANGE EVENTS OF THAT NIGHT.
EVERY TIME I DRIVE BY THIS GAS STATION,
I THINK ABOUT IT.
EVERY TIME.
IT WAS DEFINITELY A CRAZY NIGHT
TO SEE SOMETHING SO SPECTACULAR.
♪♪
NOW, ONE DAY, THIS IS A NORMAL BEACH,
THE NEXT, IT'S COVERED BY OBJECTS
THAT SCIENTISTS DON'T RECOGNIZE,
AND NO ONE DARES TO TOUCH.
WHAT'S SCARY IS, WE DON'T
KNOW WHERE THIS CAME FROM.
WHO KNOWS WHAT THE
TIDE COULD'VE BROUGHT IN.
IS IT ORGANIC OR SYNTHETIC?
IS IT TOXIC OR NOT?
Narrator: ACCORDING TO ONE THEORY,
THESE BLOBS ARE A FORM OF WEAPON.
THESE THINGS ARE VOLATILE
AND POTENTIALLY EXPLOSIVE AND DANGEROUS.
Narrator: NORTHERN FRANCE...
FAMOUS FOR ITS VAST, PRISTINE BEACHES.
JULY 18, 2017...
LOCAL THOMAS HEMBERGER
STROLLS DOWN THE BEACH,
WHERE HE SEES SOMETHING BIZARRE.
ONE DAY, NOTHING,
AND SUDDENLY, THE YELLOW BLOB INVASION.
Narrator: COUNTLESS THOUSANDS
OF STRANGE YELLOW BLOBS
PEPPER THE SAND OVER A 19-MILE STRETCH.
NO ONE KNOWS WHERE THEY HAVE COME FROM
OR WHAT THEY ARE.
EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS
SUBSTANCE IS BAFFLING.
IS IT MANMADE, IS IT
CHEMICAL, IS IT ORGANIC?
WE HAVE NO IDEA.
I DON'T EVEN KNOW IF IT'S HEALTHY
TO PICK IT UP AND TOUCH IT.
Narrator: THE FOOTAGE REACHES
FORMER ARMY COLONEL DANIEL DAVIS.
HE RECOGNIZES THIS BEACH
AS ONE WHICH PLAYED A CRUCIAL ROLE
IN THE SECOND WORLD WAR
AND WONDERS IF THESE YELLOW BLOBS
COULD BE THE LETHAL
REMAINS OF DEADLY EXPLOSIVES.
THESE FORTIFIED BEACHES,
KNOWN AS THE "ATLANTIC WALL,"
ACTED AS A DIVIDING LINE
BETWEEN NAZI-OCCUPIED EUROPE
AND THE FREE WORLD.
THE ATLANTIC WALL WAS... WAS
GERMANY'S IMPREGNABLE WALL
OF OBSTACLES AND DEFENSIVE CAPABILITIES
THAT WOULD PREVENT THE
WEST FROM ATTACKING THEM.
THE GERMANS STORED HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS
OF TONS OF AMMUNITION HERE,
BECAUSE IT'S THE CLOSEST POINT TO BRITAIN,
WHERE THEY EXPECTED THE ALLIES TO ATTACK.
BUT THE ALLIES INVADED 100
MILES SOUTH IN NORMANDY,
CAUSING THE GERMANS TO ABANDON
THIS MASSIVE WEAPONS CACHE.
LOCALS FEAR THIS AMMUNITION
IS COMING BACK TO HAUNT THEM.
UPWARDS OF 300,000 TONS
OF CONVENTIONAL AND CHEMICAL MUNITIONS
WERE JUST THROWN INTO THE WATER.
IT'S POSSIBLE THAT SOMETHING RUPTURED
AND ONLY NOW, AT 70 YEARS LATER,
IT'S FINALLY COMING TO THE SURFACE
AND MIXING WITH WHO-KNOWS-WHAT.
♪♪
Narrator: HIGHLY COMBUSTIBLE T.N.T.
FORMED THE EXPLOSIVE
BASES OF MOST MUNITIONS
DURING WORLD WAR II.
CHEMIST KEN HANSON BELIEVES
THIS COULD BE WHAT'S
WASHING UP ON THESE BEACHES.
CHEMICALS LIKE T.N.T. ARE VERY EXPLOSIVE.
♪♪
THEY'RE ALSO TYPICALLY A YELLOW COLOR.
Narrator: IT WAS FOUND THAT HANDLING T.N.T.
HAS A DEADLY SIDE EFFECT
WHEN SOMETHING WEIRD STARTED
HAPPENING TO MUNITIONS WORKERS.
THE CANARY GIRLS WERE WOMEN
WHO MADE SHELLS DURING WORLD WAR I.
THEY GOT THEIR NICKNAME
BECAUSE PROLONGED CONTACT WITH T.N.T.
TURNED THEIR SKIN YELLOW.
Narrator: OVER TIME, IT
CAUSED TOXIC JAUNDICE,
KILLING MANY.
♪♪
SINCE THIS IS A PUBLIC
BEACH, THE FIRST CONCERN IS,
ARE THESE SPHERES TOXIC, ARE THEY LETHAL?
THESE BOMBS AND BULLETS AND
THINGS CAN DECOMPOSE OVER TIME.
AND SO DEPENDING ON
WHAT THEY DECOMPOSE INTO,
THEY CAN BE VERY UNSTABLE.
Narrator: COULD THESE SINISTER YELLOW BLOBS
BE EVIDENCE OF A VAST UNDERSEA STORE
OF UNSTABLE AND TOXIC T.N.T.?
ENGINEER MATT KUTCHER IS A PYROTECHNICS
AND WEAPONRY SPECIALIST.
HE THINKS THE YELLOW
BLOBS LOOK TOO DECOMPOSED
TO BE LIVE T.N.T.
INSTEAD, HE SUSPECTS THESE BLOBS ARE T.N.T.
THAT HAS ALREADY EXPLODED UNDERWATER.
TO FIND OUT, HE SETS UP A TEST
TO SEE IF HE CAN USE T.N.T. TO
RECREATE THE YELLOW BLOBS.
I WANT TO FIND OUT
WHETHER OR NOT THESE BLOBS
COULD BE THE REMNANTS OF SOME KIND
OF UNDERWATER EXPLOSION.
Narrator: KUTCHER SETS UP
A REINFORCED PLASTIC TANK
CONTAINING JUST 3 1/2
POUNDS OF EXPLOSIVE T.N.T.,
THEN ADDS 100 GALLONS OF WATER.
THE PLASTIC TANK WILL CAPTURE
ANY DEBRIS FROM THE EXPLOSIVE.
WE'LL BE ABLE TO LOOK AROUND,
LOOK INSIDE OF IT, LOOK AROUND IT,
AND SEE WHAT REMNANTS ARE LEFT OVER.
Narrator: WITH THE DRUM FULL,
IT'S TIME TO TEST THE THEORY.
ALL RIGHT. LET'S GET READY AND DO THIS.
Narrator: THEY WIRE THE EXPLOSIVE CHARGE
INTO THE DETONATION DESK.
♪♪
3... 2... 1... HIT IT!
♪♪
NOW, THAT'S AN EXPLOSION.
Narrator: THE POWERFUL EXPLOSION
SENDS A PLUME OF WATER 90 FEET
INTO THE AIR
AND RIPS THE PLASTIC TANK APART.
LET'S GO SEE WHAT'S LEFT, HUH?
INSIDE THE SHREDDED TANK,
KUTCHER SPOTS A LAYER OF DEBRIS,
BUT IT'S NOT YELLOW.
IT'S JUST THE PLASTIC
CASING FROM THE Primacord.
APART FROM THE PLASTIC WRAPPING
THAT ENCASED THE EXPLOSIVE,
THERE IS NO OTHER RESIDUE IN THE TANK.
EVERYTHING HAS BEEN CONSUMED IN THE BLAST.
Kutcher: WHAT THIS
EXPERIMENT HAS TAUGHT US,
ALTHOUGH COOL TO WATCH,
IT'S CLEARLY NOT WHAT
WASHED UP ON THAT BEACH.
IT MUST'VE BEEN THE
REMNANTS OF SOMETHING ELSE.
♪♪
Narrator: BUT NOW THE INVESTIGATION
TAKES A BIZARRE TWIST.
COULD THESE WEIRD BLOBS
BE SO-CALLED FLOATING GOLD
WORTH MILLIONS OF DOLLARS?
THIS STUFF IS BEAUTIFUL, EXPENSIVE,
AND HAS A REALLY WEIRD ORIGIN STORY.
COMES OUT OF THE BUTT OF A SPERM WHALE.
Narrator: COMING UP,
A CELESTIAL LIGHT WITH A DARK EDGE.
THIS IS THE KIND OF WEAPON THAT
CAN BASICALLY DESTROY ARMIES.
Narrator: SCIENTISTS FEAR
A MONSTROUS MUTATION
IS TURNING DOGS BLUE.
IT HAPPENS TO ONE ANIMAL
AND THEN IT SPREADS OVER TIME.
Narrator: AND INVESTIGATORS
BELIEVE THIS BEACH MIGHT HAVE
STRUCK GOLD... FLOATING GOLD.
THEY'VE HIT THE LOTTERY.
A COUPLE KILOS OF THIS SUBSTANCE
IS WORTH THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS.
♪♪
Narrator: THOUSANDS OF
UNIDENTIFIED YELLOW BLOBS
INVADE A FRENCH BEACH.
LOCALS AND EXPERTS STRUGGLE TO UNDERSTAND
WHAT THEY ARE.
BUT MARINE BIOLOGIST DANNI WASHINGTON KNOWS
ONE SUBSTANCE WHICH LOOKS JUST LIKE IT.
BASED ON THE EVIDENCE,
THE COLOR OF THE SUBSTANCE
LOOKS A LITTLE BIT LIKE AMBERGRIS,
OR FLOATING GOLD.
AMBERGRIS... IT'S BEAUTIFUL, EXPENSIVE,
AND HAS A REALLY WEIRD ORIGIN STORY.
COMES OUT OF THE BUTT OF A SPERM WHALE.
AMBERGRIS IS A BYPRODUCT OF A SPERM WHALE'S
VORACIOUS APPETITE FOR SEAFOOD.
A SPERM WHALE'S DIET PRIMARILY CONSISTS
OF CEPHALOPODS, OR SQUID.
THEY LOVE SQUID.
THE ONLY THING IS, WITH A SQUID,
THEY HAVE A COUPLE OF
HARD PARTS IN THEIR BODY,
INCLUDING THE BEAK.
Narrator: SCIENTISTS CONSIDER SQUID BEAKS
A MARVEL OF BIOLOGICAL ENGINEERING.
SET BETWEEN ITS TENTACLES,
IT'S TOUGHER THAN ANY
KNOWN METAL OR POLYMER.
A BEAK CAN BE AS BIG AS MY FIST.
WHAT THE WHALES DO IS PRODUCE A SUBSTANCE,
KIND OF A WAXY COATING,
THAT COATS OVER ALL THOSE
BEAKS, COMPRESSES IT DOWN,
AND THEN THEY PASS 'EM
RIGHT OUT OF THEIR BODY.
ONCE THE AMBERGRIS, OR FLOATING GOLD,
REACHES THE SURFACE, THE SUN RAYS HIT IT,
EVENTUALLY BLEACHING IT
AND CHANGING ITS COLOR,
WHICH LOOKS VERY SIMILAR
TO THE YELLOW BLOBS SEEN IN THE FOOTAGE.
Narrator: AMBERGRIS PRODUCES
A HIGHLY-PRIZED MUSKY SCENT
THAT PERFUMERS PAY HANDSOMELY FOR.
Washington: IF THIS TOWN HAS
AMBERGRIS ON ITS SHORELINE,
WELL, THEY'VE HIT THE LOTTERY.
A COUPLE KILOS OF THIS SUBSTANCE
IS WORTH THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS.
♪♪
Narrator: BUT CHEMIST KEN HANSON BELIEVES
THE BLOBS ARE SIMPLY TOO
BRIGHT TO BE AMBERGRIS
AND THAT THEIR GARISH YELLOW
COLOR MUST BE MANMADE.
THAT COLOR IS NOT PART
OF THE NATURAL KINGDOM.
♪♪
Narrator: INVESTIGATORS
ANALYZING THE FOOTAGE
LOOK BEYOND THE BEACH,
TO THE SEA, FOR ANSWERS.
THESE BEACHES FLANK THE
BUSIEST SHIPPING ROUTE ON EARTH,
CARRYING ONE-QUARTER
OF ALL THE WORLD'S TRAFFIC.
Rapp: DID IT SPILL OFF SOME SHIP?
KIND OF MAKES ME CONCERNED
THAT THIS COULD BE A PUBLIC HEALTH ISSUE.
Narrator: THE MAN WHO FIRST
CAME ACROSS THE BEACH BLOBS
MUSTERS UP THE COURAGE TO TOUCH ONE.
♪♪
THE BLOBS' TOXIC SMELL AND WAXY TEXTURE
SUGGESTS TO KEN HANSON ANOTHER POSSIBILITY.
COULD THIS BE A SUBSTANCE
KNOWN AS PARAFFIN WAX?
PARAFFIN WAX IS A HYDROPHOBIC MATERIAL,
WHICH MEANS IT BASICALLY DOESN'T LIKE TO BE
IN CONTACT WITH WATER.
AND SO WHEN YOU TAKE LIQUID PARAFFIN WAX
AND YOU THROW IT IN
WATER, IT STARTS TO SOLIDIFY
AND GENERATE THESE YELLOW BLOBS.
WE USE PARAFFIN WAX FOR BEAUTY TREATMENTS,
TO MAKE CANDLES, AND AS A LUBRICANT.
IF IT IS PARAFFIN WAX,
HOW DID SO MUCH OF IT END UP ON THE BEACH?
PARAFFIN IS ALSO A COMPONENT OF CRUDE OIL.
IT CAN CLOG THE STORAGE
TANKS AND HOSES ON TANKERS,
ADDING TO TRANSPORTATION COSTS.
IT'S POSSIBLE THAT SUCH A
LARGE QUANTITY OF THIS STUFF
WASHED UP ON THE BEACH
FROM AN UNSCRUPULOUS CAPTAIN
DUMPING THE STUFF CLOSE TO SHORE.
Narrator: BUT WITH NO OFFICIAL REPORT,
WE CAN STILL ONLY GUESS AS TO THE ORIGIN
OF THESE YELLOW BLOBS AND THEIR LEGACY.
IT MIGHT GET IN, EVEN OUR OWN FOOD,
WORKING ITS WAY UP THE FOOD CHAIN.
♪♪
Narrator: NOW, A BIZARRE
SIGHT THAT DEFIES NATURE.
Moran: THE DOGS ARE ACTUALLY BRIGHT BLUE.
I'VE NEVER SEEN ANY ANIMAL THAT COLOR.
I'VE SEEN BLACK LABS, AND
I'VE SEEN GOLDEN RETRIEVERS,
BUT I HAVEN'T SEEN BLUE MANGY DOGS.
Narrator: INVESTIGATORS FEAR
THESE DOGS ARE UNDERGOING
SOME SORT OF GROTESQUE MUTATION.
GENETIC MUTATIONS THAT
CHANGE COLOR DO HAPPEN.
CHEMICALS CAN DO SOME
REALLY WEIRD THINGS TO ANIMALS.
AND IF IT'S DOING THAT TO THE DOGS,
WHAT IS IT DOING TO THE LOCAL POPULATION?
♪♪
Narrator: MUMBAI, INDIA,
HOME TO THE BOLLYWOOD FILM INDUSTRY,
AND THE 12th WEALTHIEST CITY IN THE WORLD.
♪♪
BUT MUMBAI HAS A DARKER SIDE.
HALF OF THE POPULATION LIVES IN SQUALOR
AND SCAVENGES FOR FOOD,
ALONGSIDE 90,000 STRAY
DOGS IN THIS CITY ALONE.
[ DOGS BARK ]
AUGUST 11, 2017...
LOCALS CAN'T BELIEVE THEIR
EYES, A BRIGHT BLUE DOG.
♪♪
THEN, MORE.
THE SIGHT OF POWDER-BLUE HOUNDS
SHOCKS AND BAFFLES
SCIENTISTS ACROSS THE GLOBE.
WHAT HAS COLORED THESE CANINES?
Narrator: IN HINDU CULTURE,
THE POWDER-BLUE COLOR OF THESE DOGS
IS THE SHADE OF MANY GODS, INCLUDING KALI,
THE GODDESS OF DEATH.
SOME LOCALS FEAR THESE
DOGS' BIZARRE BLUE HUE
IS A PORTENT OF DOOM.
Godfrey: I'M SURE MANY
PEOPLE HAD IN THEIR MINDS,
ARE WE BEING TOLD SOMETHING, IS IT AN OMEN?
SHOULD WE BE TAKING
SPECIAL CARE OF THESE DOGS,
BECAUSE THEY'RE THIS BLUE COLOR?
Narrator: COULD DOGS
HAVE UNKNOWINGLY INHALED
OR INGESTED SOMETHING
THAT'S GIVEN THEM THE BLUES?
SCIENTISTS KNOW OF ONE SUBSTANCE THAT,
IF CONSUMED REGULARLY,
CAN DRAMATICALLY ALTER SKIN COLOR.
USERS SWEAR THAT SILVER
IS GOOD FOR THEIR HEALTH,
PROVIDED IT'S INGESTED IN TINY PARTICLES,
KNOWN AS COLLOIDAL SILVER.
MEDICAL STUDIES HAVE FOUND NO BENEFITS.
THERE'S A NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO BELIEVE THAT
IF YOU EAT COLLOIDAL SILVER,
OR DRINK COLLOIDAL SILVER,
IT'LL HELP TREAT DISEASES
AND PREVENT DISEASES.
Narrator: IN 2007,
REPORTS REVEAL THAT
PAUL KARASON FROM OREGON,
TURNED BLUE AFTER TAKING COLLOIDAL SILVER
AS A HEALTH SUPPLEMENT
FOR MORE THAN A DECADE.
HE WOULD DRINK SILVER
IONS IN WATER EVERY DAY.
I'M NOT SURE IF IT IMPROVED
HIS HEALTH OR NOT,
BUT IT CERTAINLY TURNED HIS SKIN BLUE...
SERIOUSLY BLUE.
OTHERS, LIKE MONTANA POLITICIAN
STAN JONES, FOLLOW SUIT.
SILVER HAS ANTIBACTERIAL PROPERTIES
AND FEATURED IN OVER-THE-COUNTER MEDICINES,
UNTIL 1999.
THE F.D.A. BANNED IT, BECAUSE OF ITS
SKIN DISCOLORATION SIDE EFFECTS.
IT ENDS UP GOING THROUGH THE BODY,
THROUGH THE BLOODSTREAM, AND, ULTIMATELY,
ENDS UP IN THE SKIN,
WHICH IS WHY WE SEE THE BLUE COLORATION.
COULD IT BE POSSIBLE THAT THESE DOGS
FOUND A PUDDLE FULL OF COLLOIDAL SILVER?
Narrator: THE HISTORIC
ZAVERI BAZAR IN MUMBAI
BOASTS 30,000 ARTISANS CRAFTING JEWELRY,
OFTEN ON THE STREETS,
BUT THE LOW-TECH MELTING
AND MOLDING OF SILVER CAN LEAVE RESIDUE.
Samuel: THEY DON'T
REALLY EVEN NEED TO EAT IT.
IF WE HAVE A BUNCH OF
SILVER PARTICLES IN THE AIR,
COULD THAT GET INTO THEIR SKIN
AND COULD THAT BE
CAUSING WHAT WE'RE SEEING?
Narrator: BUT JOURNALIST
JOSHUA RAPP SPOTS A FLAW
IN COMPARING THE COLOR OF THESE DOGS
TO SILVER-INDUCED BLUE HUMAN SKIN,
LIKE THAT OF PAUL KARASON'S.
Rapp: THE THING ABOUT KARASON IS,
HIS HAIR REMAINS UNAFFECTED.
WITH THESE DOGS, IT'S JUST THE OPPOSITE,
IT'S THEIR HAIR THAT'S BLUE.
I DON'T THINK THESE DOGS INGESTED SILVER.
♪♪
Narrator: EX-CIA AGENT LINDSAY MORAN
ANALYZES THE FOOTAGE OF
THE BLUE DOGS FRAME-BY-FRAME
AND SPOTS A CLUE IN THE BACKGROUND.
WHEN YOU SEE MORE OF THE VIDEO,
YOU REALIZE THAT THESE DOGS ARE LOCATED IN,
ESSENTIALLY, AN INDUSTRIAL ZONE.
IT CERTAINLY APPEARS LIKE
POLLUTION HAS CAUSED THIS
AND, WITHOUT A DOUBT,
THIS HAS GOT TO BE HARMFUL.
Narrator: COMING UP, A
DEATH-RAY TARGETING EARTH
BAFFLES INVESTIGATORS.
YOU HAVE THIS MASSIVE BEAM OF LIGHT.
IF IT'S NOT THE SUN,
THEN WHAT THE HECK IS IT?
Narrator: TERROR FOR TOURISTS,
WHEN TREES GO ON THE ATTACK.
THERE'S TREES EVERYWHERE.
THERE'S NOWHERE TO RUN.
Narrator: AND EXPERTS FEAR A
FRANKENSTEIN-LIKE MUTATION
IS TURNING THESE DOGS BLUE.
[ DOGS BARK ]
Narrator: BLUE DOGS ROAM
THE STREETS OF MUMBAI, INDIA,
ALARMING EXPERTS.
THE IMAGES ARE SENT TO
MUMBAI CITY AUTHORITIES
FOR ANALYSIS.
THEY CONFIRM THAT THE
DOGS WERE FILMED IN TALOJA,
AN INDUSTRIAL HUB ON
THE OUTSKIRTS OF MUMBAI,
AND HOME TO ALMOST
1,000 PHARMACEUTICAL
AND CHEMICAL FACTORIES.
THIS WASTE MUST BE THE TRIGGER
THAT'S TURNING THESE DOGS BLUE.
NUMBER ONE, WHAT CHEMICALS ARE THEY,
AND NUMBER TWO, ARE
THESE DOGS NOW IN DANGER?
CHEMICALS CAN DO SOME
REALLY WEIRD THINGS TO ANIMALS.
MAKES DOGS ACT ERRATICALLY AND VICIOUSLY.
SO, COULD IT HAVE AFFECTED LIFE DOWN THERE
AND CAUSED MUTATIONS
THAT SPAWNED THIS THING
THAT WE'RE SEEING?
Moran: AND IF IT'S DOING THAT TO THE DOGS,
WHAT IS IT DOING TO THE LOCAL POPULATION?
Narrator: THE AUTHORITIES
TRACE BLUE TEXTILE DYE
IN THE LOCAL RIVER TO A NEARBY PLANT,
WHICH THEY SHUT DOWN.
THEY CLEAN UP THE DOGS,
WHO SHOW NO ILL EFFECTS.
BUT MANY REMAIN FEARFUL THAT KALI,
THE GODDESS OF DEATH,
HAS ISSUED A DIRE WARNING.
♪♪
NOW, SUNLIGHT,
BUT IT'S GOING IN THE WRONG DIRECTION.
WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON HERE?
Narrator: SOME BELIEVE IT'S A MIRACLE
OR MESSAGE FROM GOD.
THIS ABSOLUTELY LOOKS BIBLICAL.
OTHERS FEAR A "STAR WARS" DEATH-RAY
CONNECTED WITH THE NAZIS.
THIS IS THE KIND OF WEAPON
THAT COULD BURN WHOLE CITIES TO THE GROUND.
♪♪
DECEMBER 29, 2015...
IN THE CITY OF SALTA, NORTHWEST ARGENTINA,
ALL EYES LOOK TO THE SKY.
♪♪
AND WHAT'S COOL ABOUT THIS VIDEO,
IS IT'S KIND OF BACKWARDS
FROM WHAT WE USUALLY SEE.
BEAUTIFUL RAYS OF LIGHT
SHOOTING UP FROM THE GROUND,
TO THE SKY.
Narrator: WHAT IS THE SOURCE
OF THIS MASSIVE AND INTENSE BEAM OF LIGHT?
AT FIRST, EXPERTS ASSUME
IT'S THE SUN SHINING BELOW THE HORIZON,
UNTIL THE CAMERA TURNS
TO REVEAL THE SUN IN THE SKY,
BEHIND A THICK LAYER OF CLOUDS.
YOU HAVE THIS MASSIVE BEAM OF LIGHT.
IF IT'S NOT THE SUN,
THEN WHAT THE HECK IS IT?
Narrator: MILITARY ANALYST
CARLO MUñOZ CAN'T THINK
OF ANYTHING GROUND-BASED
THAT COULD CREATE SUCH AN INTENSE LIGHT.
HE BELIEVES IT'S COMING FROM OUTER SPACE
AND IS MORE CONCENTRATED AT THE HORIZON
FOR A CHILLING REASON.
YOU HAVE THIS CONCENTRATED BEAM OF LIGHT
COMING STRAIGHT FROM THE SKY
ONTO SOME UNKNOWN TARGET ONTO THE GROUND.
WHATEVER IT IS, IT'S NOT VERY GOOD.
MUñOZ FEARS THIS IS A "STAR WARS" WEAPON
IN OUTER SPACE
AND THE BRAIN CHILD OF
HISTORY'S MOST EVIL REGIME.
THIS MAKES ME THINK OF A PROGRAM
THAT WAS BEING RUN BY NAZI GERMANY,
WHO HAD ACTUALLY COME
UP WITH A CRAZY IDEA...
A MASSIVE SUN GUN.
♪♪
Narrator: COMING UP,
INVESTIGATORS FEAR A FOREST IS IN MELTDOWN.
IMAGINE EVERY LEAF, EVERY TWIG,
JUST BEING EVENTUALLY
BURNED AND DISSOLVED AWAY.
Narrator: AND HAS SOMEONE FINALLY PERFECTED
THE NAZI'S MOST DEVASTATING WEAPON DESIGN?
Narrator: A SYRIAN SINISTER RAY OF LIGHT
BLASTS THE HORIZON IN ARGENTINA.
MANY NAZI SCIENTISTS FOUND
REFUGE HERE AFTER THE WAR
AND SOME OF THEM CONTINUED
TO WORK ON EVIL PROJECTS.
THE NAZIS WERE LOOKING FOR
ANY BATTLEFIELD ADVANTAGE
THEY CAN GET OVER THEIR ENEMIES.
GERMAN SCIENTIST HERMANN OBERTH,
HE HAD ACTUALLY COME
UP WITH A CRAZY IDEA...
A MASSIVE SUN GUN.
♪♪
Narrator: OBERTH PLANNED
TO LAUNCH A PARABOLIC DISH,
MEASURING 3-SQUARE-MILES,
OR 1,000 FOOTBALL FIELDS,
ABOVE THE EARTH ON A SATELLITE
TO DIRECT THE SUN'S RAYS
ONTO A SPECIFIC POINT ON EARTH.
OBERTH PREDICTED THAT HIS SUN GUN
COULD BOIL SECTIONS OF THE
OCEAN AND TORCH ENTIRE CITIES.
IT CAN FOCUS A TREMENDOUS
AMOUNT OF LIGHT AND HEAT
ON A PARTICULAR TARGET ON THE GROUND,
FROM SPACE.
AFTER THE END OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR,
MANY NAZI SCIENTISTS CARRIED
ON THEIR EXPERIMENTAL WORK,
SOME OF IT FUNDED BY THE U.S. GOVERNMENT.
♪♪
NOW, THIS STRANGE FOOTAGE OF
AN INTENSE BEAM ABOVE ARGENTINA.
THIS IS THE KIND OF WEAPON THAT
CAN BASICALLY DESTROY ARMIES,
BURN WHOLE CITIES TO THE GROUND,
WITH AN IMMENSE AMOUNT OF LIGHT AND HEAT
DIRECTED ON A PARTICULAR TARGET.
AND WHAT IT MIGHT LOOK LIKE
IS WHAT WE'RE SEEING IN THIS VIDEO.
Narrator: THE SUN GUN
WOULD CERTAINLY EXPLAIN
WHY THIS LIGHT RAY GETS MORE INTENSE
THE CLOSER IT IS TO THE GROUND
AND THE FACT IT DOESN'T APPEAR
TO COME DIRECTLY FROM THE SUN,
BUT COULD A PARABOLIC MIRROR
REALLY BE CONVERTED INTO A LETHAL WEAPON?
TO EXPLORE THE POWER OF SUCH A DEVICE,
ENGINEER MATT KUTCHER
SETS UP AN EXPERIMENT.
Kutcher: WE ALL HAVE AN IDEA OF
HOW POWERFUL THE SUN CAN BE,
BUT IF IT'S SINGULARLY DIRECTED,
WHAT DAMAGE CAN IT REALLY
CAUSE, WHAT CAN IT DO?
♪♪
Narrator: SUNLIGHT CONSISTS
OF 54% INFRARED RAYS,
WHICH THE PARABOLIC MIRROR
FOCUSES INTO A SINGLE HOT SPOT.
KUTCHER AND COLLEAGUE CHRIS REYNOLDS
USE A SMOKE MACHINE
TO LOCATE THE EXACT POINT
WHERE THE DEFLECTED LIGHT RAYS
CONVERGE INTO A SINGLE WHITE HOT SPOT.
THERE IT IS THERE, YEAH.
OH, THERE YOU GO.
THAT'S SWEET, RIGHT? CAN YOU SEE IT?
LET'S SEE WHAT THIS CAN GENERATE.
KUTCHER'S DISH HAS A
SURFACE AREA OF 5-SQUARE-FEET,
FOCUSING 1,800 WATTS OF
ENERGY INTO A SINGLE POINT.
THE HEAT GENERATED BY THE DISH
COULD BOIL A HALF-PINT OF
WATER IN ABOUT 20 SECONDS.
A DEVICE THE SIZE OF 1,000 FOOTBALL FIELDS
COULD CREATE 30 BILLION WATTS,
THE EQUIVALENT OF 52
NUCLEAR POWER STATIONS.
I MEAN, IT'S KIND OF
AMAZING. YOU COULD TAKE A...
A DISH THAT ONE PERSON CAN CARRY,
IN A DISH THIS SMALL, THAT
COULD CREATE SO MUCH ENERGY
THAT IT LIGHTS A PIECE OF WOOD ON FIRE.
I MEAN, THAT'S A FOCUSED AMOUNT OF ENERGY.
SEEMS LIKE YOU COULD
MAKE A WEAPON OUT OF IT.
BUT IF THIS CONCENTRATED
BEAM OF LIGHT IN ARGENTINA
IS A WHITE-HOT DEATH-RAY,
BY NOW, WE'D BE SEEING
IT'S CATASTROPHIC EFFECTS.
METEOROLOGIST ANGELA FRITZ
BELIEVES WHAT WE'RE
SEEING MAY NOT BE MANMADE,
BUT INSTEAD, A RARE ATMOSPHERIC EVENT.
THIS IS AN AWESOME EXAMPLE
OF SOMETHING THAT IS AN OPTICAL PHENOMENON
THAT IS ONE OF MY FAVORITES.
IT'S CALLED ANTICREPUSCULAR RAYS.
Narrator: AN ANTICREPUSCULAR LIGHT RAY
APPEARS TO COME FROM THE GROUND,
BUT IS A RARE SPECTACLE.
IT OCCURS WHEN CLOUDS ACT LIKE A FUNNEL
AND FOCUS SUNBEAMS
ONTO A CONCENTRATED POINT
ON THE EARTH'S SURFACE.
IF THE CLOUDS ARE SITUATED
IN A VERY PARTICULAR WAY,
YOU CAN GET THAT LIGHT TO CONVERGE IN
ON A POINT ON THE HORIZON.
AND SO IT'S... IT'S REALLY
AN OPTICAL ILLUSION,
THAT THE SOURCE OF THE
LIGHT IS... IS THE HORIZON,
BUT REALLY, IT'S THE SUN.
I DID NOT EXPECT SUCH AN INCREDIBLE EXAMPLE
OF THIS ATMOSPHERIC PHENOMENON.
IT'S TRULY AMAZING.
Narrator: NOW, A PLEASURE
DRIVE IN THE MOUNTAINS
ENDS IN DISASTER.
ALL HELL BREAKS LOOSE.
Narrator: TOURISTS ARE
CRUSHED IN THEIR CAR.
THE FOREST STARTS TO
COLLAPSE ALL AROUND THEM...
BEHIND THEM, IN FRONT
OF THEM, ON TOP OF THEM.
THERE'S NOWHERE TO RUN.
THERE'S TREES EVERYWHERE.
Narrator: THIS ATTACK OF THE TREES
BAFFLES EXPERTS.
I'VE NEVER SEEN THIS MANY
TREES FALLING ALL AT ONCE,
IN UNISON.
Narrator: HAVE THESE
HUMAN INTRUDERS ANGERED
AN ANCIENT FOREST SPIRIT?
SLOVAKIA, EUROPE...
AMONG THESE FORESTS ARE THE STRANGEST,
MOST TERRIFYING AND
FORBIDDING MEDIEVAL CASTLES.
ONE OF THEM, CACHTICE CASTLE,
IS THE SEAT OF A BLOOD-THIRSTY NOBLEWOMAN,
WHO BECAME KNOWN TO LEGEND
AS THE COUNTESS DRACULA.
MAY 2014, A RUSSIAN COUPLE ON VACATION
EXPLORE THE TREE-COVERED MOUNTAINS.
BUT THEN, SOMETHING STIRS IN
THE DENSE AND ANCIENT WOODS.
THE FOREST ATTACKS.
THEY REVERSE TO ESCAPE THE CARNAGE,
ONLY FOR TREES TO FALL BEHIND THEIR VAN,
TRAPPING THEM.
EACH OF THE TREES WEIGHS
AROUND 2,000 POUNDS,
ABOUT AS MUCH AS TWO GRAND PIANOS.
AFTER THEIR MIRACULOUS ESCAPE,
THEY POST THE FOOTAGE ONLINE.
THE TREES COME DOWN ALMOST LIKE DOMINOS.
Kourounis: IT'S LIKE SOMEONE
HIT THE SELF-DESTRUCT BUTTON
ON THE FOREST.
Fritz: IT'S VERY STRANGE
THAT THEY'RE JUST FALLING,
SEEMINGLY OUT OF NOWHERE,
AT THIS EXACT MOMENT.
Narrator: IN THE HOMELAND
OF COUNTESS DRACULA,
TREES GO ON THE ATTACK.
♪♪
TREES DON'T NORMALLY
JUST FALL ON THEIR OWN.
Narrator: INVESTIGATORS STRUGGLE
TO WORK OUT WHY SO MANY TREES
TOPPLE OVER.
♪♪
BENEATH THE BEAUTY OF THE CARPATHIANS
LIE ANCIENT HORRORS.
LEGEND GOES, THAT COUNTESS DRACULA
KILLED OVER 650 PEASANT
WOMEN AND BATHED IN THEIR BLOOD.
BUT FOLKLORISTS KNOW THAT IT'S NOT VAMPIRES
THAT THE LOCALS FEAR THE MOST.
Monteith: LESHY IS THE
PROTECTOR OF THE FOREST
AND IF YOU DISRESPECT HIS TERRITORY,
HE'S COMING AFTER YOU.
Narrator: LESHY THE TREE THROWER,
IS FEARED ACROSS EASTERN EUROPE
FOR STEALING CHILDREN AND KILLING HUMANS
WHO WANDER INTO THE WOODS.
HE USES NATURE ITSELF AS A WEAPON
AGAINST THOSE WHO ANGER HIM.
IT DOESN'T SURPRISE ME THAT LESHY IS MAD.
THEY'VE PUT A ROAD RIGHT THROUGH HIS FOREST
AND THEY CUT DOWN HIS TREES.
IF IT WAS MY LAND, I'D BE MAD.
♪♪
Narrator: THE FOOTAGE REACHES
ATMOSPHERIC SCIENTIST CHRIS WALCEK.
HE LOCATES THE INCIDENT
IN THE NORTHERN CARPATHIANS OF SLOVAKIA,
WHICH LEADS HIM TO A FRESH THEORY.
SLOVAKIA LIES IN THE BLACK TRIANGLE
OF POLLUTION OF CENTRAL EUROPE.
Narrator: THE BLACK TRIANGLE
LIES BEHIND THE OLD IRON CURTAIN.
IN THE 1940s, SOVIET FORCES BUILT
SO MANY COAL-BURNING,
CHEMICAL, AND STEEL PLANTS HERE,
THAT IT UNLEASHED A MASS
KILLER FROM THE SKIES, ACID RAIN.
Kourounis: ACID RAIN...
IT'S BAD FOR EVERYTHING.
I'VE EXPERIENCED ACID
RAIN THAT'S BEEN SO STRONG,
THAT IT HAS BURNED MY
EYES AND STUNG MY SKIN
AND CORRODED ANYTHING METAL.
Narrator: OVER DECADES,
ACID RAIN KILLS THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE
AND 80% OF THE REGION'S FORESTS.
♪♪
Kourounis: ALMOST NOTHING CAN LIVE IN THESE
DENSE, ACID RAIN ENVIRONMENTS.
IMAGINE, JUST EVERY LEAF, EVERY TWIG,
JUST BEING EVENTUALLY
BURNED AND DISSOLVED AWAY.
♪♪
Narrator: BUT COMMUNIST
RUSSIA COLLAPSED DECADES AGO
AND WHEN KOUROUNIS EXAMINES THE FOOTAGE
FOR TELL-TALE SIGNS OF TOXIC ACID RAIN,
THERE ARE NONE.
TAKING ANOTHER LOOK AT THE VIDEO,
THE LEAVES ARE NOT REALLY SCORCHED,
THERE'S NO EVIDENCE OF LONG-TERM EXPOSURE
TO TREMENDOUS AMOUNTS OF ACID RAIN,
AND IT REALLY WOULDN'T
AFFECT THE ROOTS SO MUCH,
THAT AN ENTIRE FOREST WOULD
COME DOWN THAT QUICKLY.
THERE'S MORE AT PLAY HERE.
METEOROLOGIST ANGELA FRITZ
CHECKS THE WEATHER RECORDS FOR 2014
AND COMES UP WITH A FRESH THEORY.
SHE DISCOVERS THAT
PRIOR TO THE TREE COLLAPSE,
THE AREA SUFFERS EIGHT
DAYS OF THE HEAVIEST RAINFALL
SINCE RECORDS BEGAN.
MAYBE THE RAIN HAD
SOMETHING TO DO WITH THIS.
THEY'RE DRIVING ON A SLOPE,
THEY'RE ALL FALLING IN THE SAME DIRECTION.
IT... IT DOES MAKE ME WONDER.
Narrator: ANALYZING THE FOOTAGE,
GEORGE KOUROUNIS SEES THAT
THE TREES POSITION ON A STEEP SLOPE
MAKES THEM PARTICULARLY
VULNERABLE TO WATER.
THE WEIGHT AND THE MASS OF
THAT TREE BEING ANCHORED IN PLACE,
JUST BY THE MUD, IS NOT MUCH AT ALL.
SO, WHEN THAT SOIL BECOMES REALLY SATURATED
BY FLOODING RAINS OVER MANY DAYS,
SUDDENLY, THE ROOT SYSTEM IS INEFFECTIVE,
AND GRAVITY TAKES OVER.
♪♪
Narrator: EXPERTS AGREE
THE MOST LIKELY EXPLANATION
IS THAT WATER-LOGGED SOIL
DISLODGED ALL THE TREES AT ONCE.
HOWEVER, THE COUPLE WHO
NARROWLY ESCAPED DEATH THAT DAY
REMAIN CONVINCED THAT IT WAS
THE WRATH OF THE FOREST GODS.
♪♪