Episode Guide

The UFO Conspiracy

When *The New York Times* revealed the Pentagon's Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program (AATIP) in December 2017, it ignited fresh speculation about government knowledge of extraterrestrial contact. Former intelligence officer Luis Elizondo, who ran AATIP investigating UFO reports from Navy, Air Force, and intelligence channels, left the program in frustration that his findings weren't being taken seriously by other agencies or Congress. Ancient astronaut theorists argue this disclosure—described by some as "the single biggest ever news in the whole history of the UFO phenomenon"—validates decades of claims that the government possesses secret knowledge about alien visitation, with the episode suggesting a conspiracy of denial and disinformation potentially stretching back hundreds of years.

Da Vinci's Forbidden Codes

This episode argues that Leonardo da Vinci embedded hidden messages in his paintings that point to extraterrestrial influence, with ancient astronaut theorists like William Henry examining works including the *Salvator Mundi*—which sold for a record $400 million in 2017—as pieces of a larger cosmic puzzle. Proponents suggest da Vinci's genius wasn't merely human: his designs for helicopters and tanks centuries before their invention, they claim, reveal contact with a "higher intelligence." Henry travels to Florence to investigate whether da Vinci's art contains codes that could unlock secrets of the universe, proposing that the Renaissance master intentionally concealed knowledge about humanity's extraterrestrial origins within his compositions.

The Alien Protocols

In October 2017, astronomers at Hawaii's Haleakala Observatory detected 'Oumuamua, the first confirmed interstellar object passing through our solar system. The cigar-shaped visitor traveled on a hyperbolic trajectory unlike anything previously observed, prompting speculation about its nature. Ancient astronaut theorists, citing Harvard astronomer Avi Loeb's observations that the elongated shape is optimal for space travel, suggest 'Oumuamua could be an extraterrestrial craft rather than a natural asteroid. The episode uses this discovery as a springboard to explore whether governments have secret protocols for contact with alien life, with theorists like Giorgio Tsoukalos proposing such protocols already exist and that contact may have already occurred. The cigar shape also echoes centuries of UFO reports, including a 1561 woodcut depicting tubular objects in the sky.

Earth's Black Holes

In May 2017, scientists at the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory in Menlo Park, California, fired a high-energy X-ray laser at a molecule and witnessed something unexpected: electrons were violently sucked into a void before the molecule exploded, behavior researchers described as resembling a black hole—but electromagnetic rather than gravitational. Ancient astronaut theorists, including those featured in the episode, argue this laboratory phenomenon suggests black holes might exist on Earth in ways science hasn't fully recognized, potentially explaining centuries of mysterious disappearances, time distortions, and anomalous phenomena at specific locations around the globe. They point to ancient texts like the story of Moses on Mount Sinai as possible accounts of humans encountering such portals or vortexes, proposing that concentrated electromagnetic energy—not just collapsed stars—could create black hole-like effects that facilitate extraterrestrial visitation or passage between dimensions.

The Desert Codes

In 2004, amateur archaeologist Dr. Abdullah Al-Saeed discovered hundreds of low stone walls in Saudi Arabia's Harrat Khaybar lava fields that revealed their true form only from above: more than 400 geometric structures stretching across hundreds of miles into Jordan and Syria, known locally as the Works of the Old Men. Ancient astronaut theorists argue these formations are geoglyphs—messages meant to be seen from the sky rather than hunting traps. Giorgio Tsoukalos and others suggest the structures were designed to contact "someone up there," questioning why gazelle hunters would build three-foot walls when gazelles can leap over ten feet high. The episode frames these Saudi Arabian geoglyphs within a global pattern of ground drawings only visible from altitude, proposing they represent an ancient coded communication system left by extraterrestrial visitors.

Area 52

The 2013 CIA declassification of Area 51's existence, while confirming the Nevada facility's role in developing spy planes and stealth fighters, left Ancient Aliens theorists questioning whether the admission was strategically incomplete. Giorgio Tsoukalos and others interviewed suggest that Area 51's public acknowledgment may actually signal its obsolescence as a cover for even more classified facilities—hypothetical "Areas 52, 53, and 54"—where alleged extraterrestrial technology reverse-engineering continues in secret. The episode examines claims from purported Area 51 insiders who describe propulsion experts attempting to replicate alien craft technology, alongside decades of witness reports detailing objects performing maneuvers beyond known aerospace capabilities. TD Barnes, a former electrical engineer who worked on classified projects at the base for over four decades, appears to discuss what activities actually occurred there versus what remains rumored.

Earth Station Egypt

In this special two-hour episode, Giorgio Tsoukalos travels to Cairo with Egyptologist Ramy Romany and archaeoastronomer Dr. Giulio Magli to investigate whether recent discoveries at the Great Pyramid of Giza support the theory that Egypt served as a hub for extraterrestrial contact in antiquity. The episode centers on the November 2017 muography scan that detected a massive void within the pyramid—potentially the first major internal chamber discovered since the 19th century, large enough to contain the entire Statue of Liberty. Tsoukalos argues this finding, combined with the pyramid's precise cardinal alignment and construction from over two million multi-ton limestone blocks, raises fundamental questions about ancient Egyptian capabilities that ancient astronaut theorists believe point to otherworldly assistance.

Island of the Giants

In Season 13's "Island of the Giants," ancient astronaut theorist Giorgio Tsoukalos teams up with Oak Island's Marty Lagina to investigate whether Sardinia's enigmatic Bronze Age ruins point to extraterrestrial contact. The Mediterranean island contains tens of thousands of megalithic sites built by the Nuragic civilization, including massive stone towers called nuraghe, a rare European pyramid, and structures known as "tombs of the giants." Tsoukalos proposes that local legends of giants—echoing similar traditions on nearby Malta—could reference hybrid offspring of extraterrestrial visitors who "descended and mated with the beautiful women of Earth." The episode highlights artifacts at Cagliari's National Archaeological Museum featuring statues with unusual circular eyes, enormous stone blocks weighing over a ton, and structures Tsoukalos interprets as potential launch ramps for flying craft.

The Taken

At AlienCon 2018 in Pasadena, California, a panel led by former UK Ministry of Defence investigator Nick Pope reveals an astonishing show of hands: a significant portion of the audience believes they've been abducted by extraterrestrials. The episode examines claims from millions worldwide who report experiences with Grey aliens, mysterious craft, and missing time. Researcher David Jacobs points to a 1991 Roper poll suggesting that 2 to 5 percent of the American public may be abductees—potentially millions of people. Ancient astronaut theorists argue that abduction accounts share striking commonalities: witnesses describe large black eyes, buzzing or clicking sounds, orbs of light, and fragmented memories that emerge only partially. The question driving the episode is whether these consistent patterns across cultures and decades suggest genuine extraterrestrial contact, or something else entirely.

The Sentinels

Giorgio Tsoukalos and David Childress journey to Easter Island to investigate the nearly 900 moai—volcanic stone statues weighing up to 90 tons and standing over 30 feet tall—suggesting these enigmatic figures guard evidence of extraterrestrial contact. The episode highlights Dutch explorer Jacob Roggeveen's 1722 account describing not only the colossal statues but also islanders of "giant proportions" with light skin and red or blonde hair, details the theorists find significant. They argue the moai's elongated, non-human faces appear "almost alien," and point to local legends claiming the statues were moved using "mana"—a mystical energy capable of levitation—as evidence that conventional explanations involving wooden rollers and manual labor are insufficient given the statues' enormous weight and the challenging terrain.

Russia Declassified

This episode argues that the United States and Russia have maintained a covert alliance throughout the Space Race, secretly collaborating on extraterrestrial matters despite Cold War hostilities. Ancient astronaut theorists cite a 2012 exchange at the Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul, where President Obama told Russian President Dmitry Medvedev "it's important for him to give me space"—interpreted by proponents like Giorgio Tsoukalos not as political maneuvering room but as a literal reference to outer space cooperation. The episode presents Medvedev's subsequent off-camera remarks in Moscow, where he appeared to confirm that Russian presidents receive classified briefings on aliens and the groups monitoring them, as evidence of ongoing intergovernmental coordination on extraterrestrial contact that transcends geopolitical rivalries.

They Came from the Sky

This episode explores the theory that meteorites revered by ancient cultures may have been more than fallen space rocks—potentially pieces of extraterrestrial technology or deliberate tools sent by advanced civilizations. Ancient Astronaut theorists point to NASA's proposed RAMA initiative (Reconstituting Asteroids into Mechanical Automata), which envisions converting asteroids into interstellar probes, as proof that such a concept is scientifically viable. The episode highlights Arizona's Barringer Crater, a 1,200-meter-wide impact site formed 50,000 years ago, and suggests that meteorite impacts could have been intentional acts of terraforming. Theorists argue that meteorites contain the exact materials—iron, nickel, cobalt, and organic compounds—needed for space exploration and potentially for altering planetary environments to support life.

The Artificial Human

When humanoid robot Sophia addressed the United Nations in October 2017 and received citizenship from Saudi Arabia two weeks later, ancient astronaut theorists saw not a publicity stunt but a fulfillment of humanity's oldest programming. The episode argues that our drive to create artificial life in our own image—despite having biological reproduction—reveals something deeper than vanity or technological ambition. Theorists including those featured suggest this compulsion mirrors the divine creative acts described in ancient texts, from the Vedas to Genesis, where lonely gods fashion companions from their own essence. They point to what they describe as a "mathematical fingerprint" in human genetic code as potential evidence that we ourselves are "genetic robots" built by extraterrestrial engineers, now unconsciously repeating our creators' work with silicon and circuitry instead of DNA.

The Alien Phenomenon

This anniversary episode examines whether Erich von Däniken's 1968 bestseller *Chariots of the Gods?* has withstood fifty years of scrutiny since it proposed that extraterrestrial visitors helped build ancient structures like the pyramids and left evidence in monolithic sites, strange carvings, and desert markings. Ancient astronaut theorists featured in the episode argue that von Däniken's core thesis—that ancient religious texts describe "nuts-and-bolts technology from another star system" rather than divine encounters—has gained credibility as NASA personnel acknowledge the likelihood of extraterrestrial life and new investigative tools have become available. The episode frames von Däniken's work within the turbulent context of 1968, a year of social revolution, Vietnam War protests, and nuclear anxiety, when established institutions faced widespread questioning and Kennedy's Moon landing ambition made space exploration feel imminent.

Return to Mars

As commercial spaceflight accelerates—with Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo Unity reaching suborbital altitudes in 2018 and SpaceX's Falcon Heavy reviving Moon rocket capabilities—ancient astronaut theorists suggest humanity isn't pioneering space colonization but returning to an extraterrestrial heritage. William Henry proposes we're nearing discoveries that will validate ancient astronaut theory entirely, while Linda Moulton Howe claims governmental knowledge of alien intelligence must be disclosed before humans venture beyond Earth. The episode frames Mars exploration as potentially revelatory: theorists ask what happens if colonists encounter artificial structures on the red planet, implying previous civilizations may have left evidence waiting to be rediscovered by descendants unaware of their cosmic origins.