In 2005, Lynn Hickox discovered a striking geological formation near Alberta, Canada, while browsing satellite imagery—a massive face-like feature now called the Badlands Guardian. Ancient astronaut theorists argue this geoglyph, depicting what appears to be an indigenous person wearing a feathered headdress, shows too much deliberate detail to be natural. The formation includes not just basic features like a brow, nose, and lips, but secondary details like an eyelid, leading proponents to suggest it was intentionally carved to be visible from the sky, much like the Nazca Lines. Some theorists point to the absence of an ear—now the site of a gas installation and access road—as evidence of modern disruption to an ancient monument, questioning whether earlier archaeologists have mistaken other artificial structures for natural hills.
Mainstream geologists attribute the Badlands Guardian to natural erosion and water runoff sculpting the badlands terrain over millennia, a well-documented process in this region of sedimentary rock formations. Pareidolia, the human tendency to perceive meaningful patterns like faces in random stimuli, offers a compelling explanation for why this particular arrangement of ridges and valleys appears so deliberately crafted. Yet the episode raises genuinely intriguing questions about how we distinguish natural from artificial landscapes, especially when viewed from perspectives—like satellite imagery—unavailable to earlier researchers. The formation's uncanny resemblance to regional indigenous peoples adds a layer of cultural curiosity that makes it worth examining, even if geology provides the likely answer.
Badlands Guardian
Canada · Modern
Ancient Aliens suggests the Badlands Guardian formation, a natural rock formation resembling a human face, may have been created or marked by extraterrestrials as a sign or monument. The episode explores theories that ancient aliens may have used geographical landmarks to communicate or mark significant locations.
Blythe Intaglios
United States · Aztec
Ancient astronaut theorists, guided by Chemehuevi elder Alfredo Figueroa, argue the giant humanoid figures represent Aztec creator gods — including Quetzalcoatl and the star god Cicimitl — who descended from the cosmos, making the Blythe area the legendary Aztec homeland of Aztlan where extraterrestrials landed. Mainstream interpretations link the intaglios to Native American cultures of the Colorado River region who created them as cosmological and ceremonial images aligned with constellations.
Cydonia Pyramids, Mars
Mars · Mars
Ancient astronaut theorists claim that pyramid-shaped formations near the Face on Mars in the Cydonia region match the pyramids of ancient Egypt, suggesting a direct connection between a lost Martian civilization and Egyptian culture. Mainstream planetary scientists consider these formations to be natural mesas and buttes shaped by wind erosion.
Face on Mars (Cydonia region)
Mars · Mars
Ancient astronaut theorists argue the Face on Mars is an artificial structure built by an extraterrestrial civilization, supported by fractal analysis showing it is statistically different from surrounding terrain and exhibits high bisymmetry inconsistent with natural formation. NASA and mainstream scientists attribute it to a natural mesa whose face-like appearance is a product of lighting conditions and pareidolia, a view seemingly confirmed by higher-resolution later images.
Mount Rushmore National Memorial
United States · Modern
The episode uses Mount Rushmore as a scale comparison to underscore the enormity of the Badlands Guardian, arguing that if a modern monument of its size required 400 workers and 14 years with modern technology, an ancient structure of much greater size would have required extraordinary — possibly extraterrestrial — assistance. No mainstream counter-claim is offered regarding Rushmore itself.
Utopia Planitia profile face, Mars
Mars · Mars
Ancient astronaut theorists argue that a profile face discovered in satellite images of the Utopia region of Mars, bearing an avian headdress similar to the Badlands Guardian's feathered headdress, suggests a single extraterrestrial culture created geoglyphs on both Mars and Earth. No mainstream scientific body has recognized this feature as artificial.
Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park
Canada · Native American
Ancient astronaut theorists argue that petroglyphs here, including a depiction of the Blackfoot creator god Napi shown inside a disc with four fingers and an elongated skull, are evidence of ancient contact with extraterrestrial sky beings. Mainstream archaeology regards the rock art as a rich cultural record of indigenous Blackfoot traditions and rituals dating back at least 9,000 years.