Top 10 Extraterrestrial Conspiracy Theories of All Time
#10: Flat Earth
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One of the most prominent conspiracy theories of the 21st century is that the Earth is flat. There was a time when the idea that the planet was a disk wasn’t so far-fetched. But that was ages ago, when our scope of knowledge was still limited. Yet despite a slew of scientific evidence to the contrary, some people still firmly believe that the Earth is flat. This conspiracy theory found new life upon the advent of the internet, as flat-earthers found each other through social media and became a community of sorts. No matter what scientific evidence is presented, it’s been difficult to convince proponents of the theory that the Earth is spherical.
#9: The Philadelphia Experiment
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There’s nothing like a good sci-fi story to get the imaginative juices flowing. Ex-merchant marine Carl Allen once claimed that the military tried to make the USS Eldridge ship completely invisible. They allegedly hoped to bend light around it by employing electrical generators. The experiment was said to be conducted at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard. The story goes that in October 1943, the ship broke the space-time continuum, and the Eldridge was teleported to Virginia and slightly back in time. It was further speculated that those on board suffered horrible consequences as a result. Most people have reached the conclusion that this is a simple hoax, and the Navy’s official position seems to be that there was no “Philadelphia Experiment.”
#8: Men in Black
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Here come the men in black, the galaxy defenders. That is, according to those who believe that there’s a major plot underway to keep the alien UFOs a secret. Within ufology, these agents are said to be mysterious government workers who coerce UFO eyewitnesses into silence. If coercion doesn’t work, then they’ll allegedly resort to more drastic measures. John Keel, the famous author of “The Mothman Prophecies,” took it one step further, and called the men in black “demonic” creatures. Of course, there’s no solid evidence that they even actually exist. But since they’re supposedly top secret agents who are meant to be stealthy, this theory certainly helps ufologists explain the apparent lack of alien spacecrafts.
#7: The Black Knight
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Back in 1998, the STS-88 mission snapped a startling photograph. A long, black object appeared to be orbiting the Earth. Naturally, the conspiracy theorists immediately got to work and claimed that this was an ancient alien satellite called The Black Knight. This wasn’t the first time the idea of such a device was floated around, but it did help it gain traction. Believers say that it’s been circling our planet for over 10,000 years, and that NASA has been keeping it a secret from the general population. However, NASA claims that the “Black Knight” is actually just space debris, with a prominent journalist named James Oberg further suggesting it’s a thermal blanket.
#6: The Anunnaki
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Famous conspiracy theorist Erich von Däniken released his seminal book “Chariots of the Gods?” in 1968. In it, he posited that most world religions were created after humans were visited by ancient alien astronauts. The book was very popular but largely discredited by academia. Still, the theory was continued by Zecharia Sitchin, who claimed that the Anunnaki deities came to Earth from a planet supposedly called Nibiru, created modern humans, and forced them to mine gold. Plus, they allegedly showed us agriculture and constructed the Great Pyramids of Egypt. David Icke also apparently claims that the Annunaki are the evil force his famous conspiracy theory, which essentially calls politicians reptiles in disguise, hinges on.
#5: The Tunguska Event
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During an early summer morning back in 1908, a large area of Siberia was decimated by a mysterious event. Over 800 square miles of forest was flattened and about 80 million trees were reportedly destroyed. There was just one problem: as far as anyone could tell, nothing had hit the Earth. So what the heck happened? Contemporary reports blamed aliens, alleging that evidence of extraterrestrial involvement was found at the site. While that makes for a compelling story, it’s not widely believed to be what occurred. It’s now thought that a meteoroid measuring somewhere around 200 feet exploded in mid-air and leveled the surrounding area in what’s called a “meteor air burst.”
#4: The Face on Mars
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It’s one of the most popular images in space history - an eerie face resembling an old hockey mask emerging from the dust of Mars and peering up at the camera. It’s quite a creepy picture, and it understandably spurned interest in extraterrestrial life. Some believe that the face on Mars is proof that there was an ancient Martian civilization. The official explanation is that the supposed “face” is actually just an instance of pareidolia, or seeing a pattern in something innocuous. Apparently, this is just a normal hill whose face-like qualities are enhanced by specific lighting. It’s not the only planetary phenomenon that’s spawned alien conspiracies, with the hexagon on Saturn standing out as another notable case.
#3: Area 51
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When it comes to aliens, few names are as prominent as Area 51. Officially named Homey Airport, the facility belongs to the United States Air Force, who claims that it’s notably used to test aircrafts. The work there is deemed top secret, so Area 51 has remained heavily guarded and protected since its founding in 1955. Naturally, the mystery surrounding it has generated untold amounts of conspiracies relating to UFOs, aliens, energy weapons, and time travel, among others. The very name of Area 51 is synonymous with extraterrestrial conspiracy theories, and it remains an enormous point of national interest. It doesn’t seem that the speculation will stop anytime soon, either. Remember when the Internet wanted to storm it?!
#2: Faked Moon Landings
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On July 20, 1969, humanity achieved what is arguably its greatest feat - landing people on the moon. What was the stuff of science fiction just years before was now a reality, and it was amazing. Maybe it seemed too amazing to some. One long-standing conspiracy claims that we never actually set foot on the moon and that NASA made it up to emerge victorious in the Space Race against the Soviets. Per this theory, the footage was shot on a Hollywood soundstage by Stanley Kubrick. And the evidence proving the moon landings happened are often not enough to sway those who think it was a hoax. Unlike some other conspiracies, this one is actually relatively mainstream, with as many as 1/5th of Americans believing it. Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions. Unexplained Cattle Deaths A Conspiracy Posits They’re Caused by Extraterrestrials The Majestic 12 Per Proponents of This Theory, There’s a Secret Government Body Created by Harry Truman to Look Into Flying Saucers Secret Lunar Base Conspiracists Think a Base Was Established on the Dark Side of the Moon The Nibiru Cataclysm Some Have Been Speculating That Earth Is Going to Collide with the Massive, Unseen “Planet X” Lost Cosmonauts This Theory States That the Soviet Union Sent People to Space Before Yuri Gagarin But Subsequently Covered It Up
#1: Roswell
There have been countless UFO sightings throughout the years, but nothing compares to this one. The Roswell incident is a legendary piece of American history, and it has remained the go-to UFO story for decades. In 1947, what’s now believed to have been a surveillance balloon from the Air Force’s classified “Project Mogul” crashed into a New Mexico ranch. At first, the Roswell Army Air Field informed the public that “a flying disc” had been found at the site. But this claim was famously retracted, leading many to believe that a cover-up was at play. Decades later, military officer Jesse Marcel remained adamant that what they had recovered was extraterrestrial in nature. Roswell is arguably the greatest alien conspiracy theory of the 20th century.
