This episode explores whether Chile's status as a global UFO hotspot—particularly in the Atacama Desert—might be connected to the region's 5,000+ ancient geoglyphs, nearly five times more than Peru's famous Nazca Lines. The investigation centers on 2019 Chilean Navy helicopter footage of an unidentified craft that even the government couldn't explain, alongside the discovery by a NASA-funded rover mission that same year of microbial life thriving beneath the Atacama's bone-dry surface. Ancient astronaut theorists including Giorgio Tsoukalos and Erich von Däniken argue the massive geoglyphs—spread across 90,000 square miles of one of Earth's harshest landscapes—represent evidence of sustained extraterrestrial contact, with indigenous traditions speaking of "beings who came from outer space." The theorists suggest the desert's Mars-like conditions and unique microbial life may hold clues to why this region would attract non-human visitors across millennia.
Mainstream archaeologists attribute the Atacama geoglyphs to the same cultural and ceremonial purposes as Nazca—likely ritual pathways, astronomical markers, or territorial symbols created by pre-Columbian societies between roughly 600 and 1500 CE. The microbial discoveries, while scientifically significant for astrobiology research, represent extremophile organisms adapted to harsh conditions rather than extraterrestrial life. For skeptics, the episode offers genuine intrigue through the authenticated Chilean Navy footage and the legitimate scientific mystery of how ancient peoples executed such massive desert projects with limited resources—questions that remain compelling whether the answers lie in human ingenuity, cultural motivation, or something more enigmatic.
Atacama Desert
Chile · Pre-Columbian Andean
The show connects the 5,000+ ancient geoglyphs found in Chile's Atacama Desert to high UFO sightings in the region, suggesting a possible connection between ancient sites and extraterrestrial visitation patterns.
Atacama Desert Geoglyphs
Chile · Pre-Columbian Andean cultures (possibly Nazca-related)
Ancient Aliens suggests that over 5,000 ancient geoglyphs found in Chile's Atacama Desert may be connected to Chile's high number of UFO sightings, implying a link between ancient extraterrestrial contact and continued alien visitation.
Atacama Giant (Cerro Unitas)
Chile · Andean
Ancient astronaut theorists argue the Atacama Giant served as a device to tell locals when extraterrestrials would return, noting that local elders say it represents sacred space enabling communication with sky gods. Archaeoastronomers maintain it was used for astronomical purposes, marking lunar cycles, and was a focal point of regional culture.
El Bosque Air Force Base
Chile · Modern
Theorists point to CEFAA-analyzed footage from a 2010 air show above El Bosque Air Force Base, in which an object traveling at approximately 4,000 mph was detected crossing military jet formations, as evidence of non-human aircraft operating in Chilean airspace. CEFAA, the Chilean government's official anomalous aerial phenomena body, concluded the object was unidentified but did not attribute it to an extraterrestrial origin.
El Enladrillado
Chile · Andean
Theorists claim this remote volcanic-block plateau, constructed from 233 stones each weighing upwards of ten tons and accessible only by horseback, served as an extraterrestrial spaceport. No mainstream archaeological consensus on its builders or function has been widely published, though it is associated with pre-Columbian indigenous activity in the Maule region.
Lake Colbún (San Clemente UFO zone)
Chile · Modern
Theorists claim UFOs have appeared at the Lake Colbún hydroelectric plant in the San Clemente area, allegedly drawing power from the facility and causing widespread blackouts, suggesting extraterrestrials are harvesting Chile's energy resources. Local investigators and CEFAA have logged numerous sighting reports from the San Clemente corridor, which Chile's national tourism board has designated part of an official UFO trail.
Pampa Lluscuma (Corporal Valdes incident site)
Chile · Modern
Theorists cite the 1977 Corporal Armando Valdes incident — in which a military patrol in the northern Atacama reportedly witnessed two violet lights land nearby, after which Valdes disappeared briefly and reappeared with five days' beard growth and a watch showing a future date — as evidence of alien abduction and time distortion. Skeptics have questioned the reliability of witness testimony and suggested psychological or hoax explanations.
Santiago (Chilean Navy Helicopter Infrared Incident)
Chile · Modern
Theorists argue that nine minutes of infrared footage captured by a Chilean Navy Airbus Cougar helicopter in November 2014 shows a craft with an inexplicable cold-field bubble, anomalous heat plume behavior, and a peanut or diamond shape matching ancient Atacama geoglyphs — constituting evidence of advanced non-human technology. CEFAA investigated the footage and declared the object unidentified, while some analysts suggested conventional explanations such as a commercial aircraft, though the thermal signature remained unexplained.
Tierra del Fuego
Chile · Pre-Columbian
Theorists argue that the Selk'nam people's rituals — costumes with antenna-like protrusions, body paint symbolizing 'fire of heaven,' and elongated skull representations — record genuine encounters with extraterrestrial visitors who descended from the sky and imparted knowledge. Anthropologists, including Martin Gusinde who photographed the ceremonies in the early 20th century, document these as elaborate initiation and cosmological rituals reflecting the tribe's indigenous spiritual worldview.