All language subtitles for What.on.Earth.S04E17.1080p.DSCP.WEB-DL.AAC2.0.H.264-BTN_track3_[eng]

Narrator:
THEY'RE WATCHING YOU.

MORE THAN 4,000 SATELLITES
CIRCLE THE EARTH.

EVERY DAY, THEY UNCOVER NEW,
MYSTERIOUS PHENOMENA

THAT DEFY EXPLANATION.

**

AN 8,000-SQUARE-MILE CODE
IN THE LAND OF THE SPIDER GOD.

ALL OF THESE LINES
ARE RADIATING, CARVED OUT,

FORMING WHAT LOOKS LIKE
TO BE A GIANT SPIDER WEB,

AND IT'S HUGE.

Narrator: SATELLITES TRACK
A MYSTERY MEGA-PREDATOR

IN THE SOUTHERN SEAS.

Nelson:
THIS REALLY FEELS LIKE SOMETHING
OUT OF THE MOVIE "JAWS."

BUT IN THIS CASE,
JAWS IS THE VICTIM.

Narrator: AND THE ISLAND
AT THE END OF THE WORLD.

Capps: THE BUILDING
IN THIS SATELLITE IMAGE,

IT'S KEEPING US AWAY
FROM NUCLEAR ARMAGEDDON.

Narrator:
BAFFLING PHENOMENA.

MYSTERIES FROM SPACE.

WHAT ON EARTH ARE THEY?

-- Captions by VITAC --
www.vitac.com

CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY
DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS

**

A RECENTLY DECLASSIFIED
1972 SPY SATELLITE IMAGE

OF BOLIVIA'S HIGH PLAINS
SHOCKS THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL WORLD.

THE CORONA SATELLITE PHOTOGRAPHS
A STRANGE SERIES OF LINES

CRISSCROSSING THE PLATEAU.

Rose: THESE LINES COVER AN AREA
THAT'S 8,000 SQUARE MILES.

I MEAN, THIS IS HUMONGOUS.

THIS IS REALLY
A BIG UNDERTAKING.

Narrator: SCALE ANALYSIS REVEALS
THE ORIGINAL LINES

ARE UP TO 10 FEET WIDE,

AND SOME STRETCH
FOR OVER 12 MILES,

ALL TRAVELING IN
RAZOR-SHARP STRAIGHT LINES.

THIS LOOKS MAN-MADE.

IT LOOKS HUMAN-MADE, FOR SURE.

IT LOOKS VERY
TIGHTLY ENGINEERED.

**

Narrator: ON THE GROUND,
INVESTIGATORS DISCOVER THAT,

WHATEVER THEY ARE, THEY'VE BEEN
ETCHED INTO THE EARTH BY HAND

THOUSANDS OF YEARS AGO.

**

THE DARK SURFACE MATERIAL OF
SOIL AND ROCK HAS BEEN DUG UP,

THE LIGHTER-COLORED SUBSTANCE
BENEATH BECOMING THE TOPSOIL.

**

INVESTIGATORS SEARCH FOR CLUES

THAT COULD REVEAL
WHO BUILT THE LINES AND WHY.

**

HISTORIAN DAVID KRUEGER
HAS SEEN SOMETHING SIMILAR,

ALSO IN SOUTH AMERICA.

WHEN I SEE THIS IMAGE,
AND I CONSIDER THE LOCATION,

IT KIND OF REMINDS ME
OF THE NAZCA LINES

THAT ARE LOCATED IN NEARBY PERU.

**

Narrator: THE NAZCA LINES ARE
FIRST STUDIED IN 1926.

BUT EARLY GROUND
INVESTIGATIONS REVEAL

NOTHING OF THE SCALE
AND COMPLEXITY OF THE DESIGNS.

BUT WHEN COMMERCIAL PILOTS FIRST
FLY OVER PERU IN THE 1930s,

THEY ARE THE FIRST
TO BEHOLD THE FULL SPLENDOR

OF THESE ANCIENT PATTERNS.

**

BUT CLOSER ANALYSIS
OF THE TWO SITES

REVEALS THAT THE LINES
IN THE BOLIVIAN SATELLITE IMAGE

HAVE A CRUCIAL DIFFERENCE.

IN THE NAZCA AREA, THERE'S
NOTHING QUITE LIKE THESE LINES.

WE DON'T SEE ANYTHING
QUITE LIKE THIS STRUCTURE,

NETWORK OF LINES,
SO THIS IS UNIQUE.

Narrator: WHEN ANALYSTS
REEXAMINE THE SATELLITE IMAGE,

THEY NOTICED THE LINES
ARE NOT JUST RANDOM MARKINGS

IN THE GROUND.

THEY SEEM TO FORM A PATTERN.

Chamberlain: ALL OF THESE LINES
ARE RADIATING, CARVED OUT,

FORMING WHAT LOOKS LIKE
TO BE A GIANT SPIDER WEB.

AND IT'S HUGE.

Narrator:
INVESTIGATORS CHECK BACK
THROUGH ARCHAEOLOGICAL RECORDS,

LOOKING FOR OTHER SIGNS OF
WEB-LIKE IMAGERY IN THIS REGION.

**

THEY FIND AN ANCIENT PEOPLE
CALLED THE MOCHE

WHO LIVED OVER 2,000 YEARS AGO.

SKILLED ENGINEERS, THEY BUILT
A COMPLEX SERIES OF CANALS,

SUPPORTING SETTLEMENTS
OF THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE.

AMONG THEIR MANY RITUALS,
THE MOCHE WORSHIPPED A BRUTAL

AND TERRIFYING SPIDER GOD
CALLED THE DECAPITATOR.

**

AS FAR AS GODS GO,
SPIDERS ARE NOT GOING TO BE

THE WARM AND FUZZY ONES.

THEY'RE THE POWERFUL ONES,
THE INTIMIDATING ONES.

THEY'RE GOING TO BE THE ONES
THAT ARE USED

TO SCARE YOUR ENEMY.

**

Narrator: THIS GIANT SPIDER
DEITY DEMANDS SACRIFICES

OF THE MOST GRUESOME KIND.

VICTIMS ARE TORTURED FOR WEEKS

TO DRAW BLOOD
AS AN INITIAL OFFERING.

THEIR HEADS ARE SEVERED
TO PAY TRIBUTE

TO THE ALL-POWERFUL SPIDER.

FINALLY, PARTS OF
THE CORPSES ARE EATEN

IN CANNIBALISTIC RITUALS.

INVESTIGATORS CONSIDER IF THE
LINES IN THE SATELLITE IMAGE

WERE CONSTRUCTED AS AN HOMAGE
TO THE DECAPITATOR.

YOU CAN SEE WHY THIS GOD WOULD
HAVE BEEN SOMETHING TO BE FEARED

AND APPEASED WITH GIFTS
AND BLOODY RITUALS.

**

Narrator: BUT RECENT CARBON
DATING OF THE LINES IN BOLIVIA

CONFIRMS THEY WERE MADE
3,000 YEARS AGO,

A THOUSAND YEARS
BEFORE THE MOCHE PEOPLE.

ARCHAEOLOGIST MARK ALTAWEEL

STUDIES THE SATELLITE IMAGE
IN DETAIL.

HE SUSPECTS THE LINES
MAY BE HIDING

SOMETHING ALTOGETHER DIFFERENT
WITHIN THEIR INTRICATE PATTERNS.

Altaweel: I DON'T THINK THIS IS
A KIND OF MASSIVE SPIDER WEB.

**

THEY'RE NOT SPACED EVENLY.
THEY'RE NOT SYMMETRICAL.

SO IT'S SUGGEST THEY'RE
PROBABLY PATHWAYS

THAT WOULD HAVE CONNECTED
DIFFERENT PLACES.

Narrator: INVESTIGATORS ANALYZE
THE SATELLITE IMAGE FOR CLUES

AS TO WHAT THE LINES
COULD BE CONNECTING

AND MAKE
AN INTRIGUING DISCOVERY.

WHEN YOU REALLY ZOOM IN
ON THESE LINES,

YOU CAN SEE THAT IT'S NOT
A STRAIGHTFORWARD LINE.

THERE'S LITTLE DOTS ALONG THEM.

THESE WERE ACTUALLY TOMBS
CALLED CHOPAS.

**

UNDERNEATH THESE TOWERS,
YOU WILL FIND NOBLE PERSONS

BURIED IN THE FETAL POSITION
ALONG WITH EARTHLY POSSESSIONS

TO CARRY THEM
INTO THE NEXT LIFE.

Narrator: THE LINES
LINK THE TOMBS TOGETHER,

AND THAT'S NOT ALL.

EXPERTS CONSIDER IF
THE ORIENTATION OF KEY PATHS

MEANS THEY WERE BUILT
AS A KIND OF SACRED PATHWAY.

Maca: I THINK THESE LINES COULD
BE TIED TO RELIGION AND TO GODS.

WHY? BECAUSE A LOT OF THE LINES,

THEY SEEM TO CONNECT
DIFFERENT MOUNTAINS.

AND MOUNTAINS
WERE ASSOCIATED WITH GODS,

WITH THE HEAVENS,
WITH CELESTIAL BODIES,

AND WITH DIVINE POWER.

Narrator: BUT DESPITE
PAINSTAKING ANALYSIS,

BEYOND BEING PATHWAYS
TO THE AFTERLIFE,

RESEARCHERS CANNOT BE SURE
OF THE LINES' PRECISE ROLE

IN THE COMMEMORATION
OF THE DEAD.

**

MANY BELIEVE THE PATTERNS
IN THE GROUND MUST BE A CODE,

A MESSAGE FROM THE ANCIENT PAST.

BUT IF THEY ARE, IT'S A CODE
WE MAY NEVER BREAK.

Gough: THIS WAS PREHISTORY.
NOTHING WAS WRITTEN DOWN.

AND, SADLY, WE WILL NEVER KNOW
FOR CERTAIN WHAT THEY WERE FOR.

**

Narrator: COMING UP...

THE STRANGE RINGS THAT STAND
BETWEEN US AND ARMAGEDDON.

Baker:
YOU'RE COUNTING ON THE GOOD WILL
OF DICTATORS LIKE KIM JONG-UN

TO POLICE THEMSELVES?

Narrator: AND THE GREAT WHITE
SHARK KILLER OF THE DEEP.

THESE THINGS ARE MASSIVE.

THEY CAN GROW
UP TO 60 FEET LONG,

AND THEY CAN GRAB PREY
MORE THAN 30 FEET AWAY.

Narrator: JANUARY 2004 --

WESTERN AUSTRALIA.

SCIENTISTS USING SATELLITE TAGS
TO TRACK GREAT WHITE SHARKS

NOTICE SOMETHING STRANGE --

A LONE, PINGING TAG FLOATING
ON THE SURFACE OF THE OCEAN.

BUT THE BIG SHARK
IS NOWHERE TO BE SEEN.

THESE TAGS ARE SPECIFICALLY
DESIGNED FOR SHARKS,

AND THEY CAN'T JUST SHAKE IT OFF
AND GET RID OF IT.

SO WHEN ONE OF THESE SHOW UP,

YOU KNOW SOMETHING'S GONE WRONG.

Narrator:
FOUR MONTHS PREVIOUSLY,
BIOLOGISTS SECURELY FITTED IT

TO A 9-FOOT FEMALE GREAT
WHITE SHARK CODENAMED "ALPHA."

THE TAG CONTAINS INSTRUMENTS

TO RECORD HER BODY TEMPERATURE
AND DEPTH.

A SATELLITE UPLINK TRACKS
HER MOVEMENT ALONG THE COAST.

THE SCIENTISTS HOPE THE RECORDED
DATA WILL ENABLE THEM

TO LEARN MORE ABOUT
WHERE SHE FEEDS AND REPRODUCES.

THESE TAGS ARE FITTED
WITH SATELLITE GPS MARKERS.

WHEN THEY FLOAT TO THE SURFACE,
A PING GOES OUT,

AND YOU KNOW
EXACTLY WHERE THAT IS

AND WHETHER OR NOT
IT'S ON A SHARK.

**

Narrator:
THE SATELLITE TAG HAS SURFACED

AND BEGUN PINGING
WEEKS AHEAD OF SCHEDULE.

A VISUAL INSPECTION ALSO REVEALS
SOMETHING STRANGE.

THE TAG APPEARS TO HAVE BEEN
EATEN AWAY BY ACID,

AND YOU DON'T GET ACID LIKE THIS
IN THE SEA,

WHICH SUGGESTS
THAT THE TAG HAS BEEN

IN THE STOMACH
OF ANOTHER CREATURE.

**

Narrator:
THE TAG WAS SECURELY ATTACHED

TO THE 3-INCH-THICK BASE
OF HER DORSAL FIN.

GREAT WHITES LIKE ALPHA
ATTACK THEIR PREY

AT UP TO 35 MILES PER HOUR

AND WITH SUCH FEROCITY,

THEY CAN GO THROUGH
30,000 TEETH IN A LIFETIME.

AND YET, IT APPEARS THAT
A MYSTERY ANIMAL HAS ATTACKED

AND TAKEN HUGE CHUNKS OUT
OF THE MASSIVE APEX PREDATOR

BEFORE BELCHING THE TAG BACK UP.

THINK ABOUT THIS.
YOU HAVE A GREAT WHITE SHARK

THAT POTENTIALLY WAS EATEN
BY SOMETHING BIGGER THAN IT.

THAT'S TERRIFYING.

Narrator: MARINE BIOLOGIST
ARI FRIEDLAENDER CONSIDERS

WHETHER SHARK ALPHA WAS DEVOURED
BY A MEMBER OF ITS OWN SPECIES.

Friedlaender:
SHARKS ARE AMAZING PREDATORS.

THEY CAN BE VERY VICIOUS.

THEY CAN GET INTO
THESE FEEDING FRENZIES,

SO IT'S VERY POSSIBLE
THAT A 9-FOOT SHARK

WAS PREYED ON BY A LARGER SHARK.

**

Narrator: THE TAG'S SATELLITE
TRACKING DATA REVEALS THAT ALPHA

TRAVELLED 2,000 MILES
THROUGH SEAS

INFESTED WITH OVER
100 SPECIES OF SHARK.

**

BUT FRIEDLAENDER BELIEVES
THAT ONLY ONE IS CAPABLE

OF TAKING ON
AND DEVOURING SHARK ALPHA.

I THINK THE MOST LIKELY THING
THAT HAPPENED IS THAT ANOTHER,

MUCH LARGER GREAT WHITE
ATTACKED THIS ONE.

IT'S HARD TO FIND A MEAL
IN THE OCEAN,

AND IF THE ONLY THING AROUND YOU

IS SOMETHING THAT'S
PRETTY SIMILAR TO YOU,

YOU'RE GOING TO TAKE
THE OPPORTUNITY TO FEED

RATHER THAN STARVE,

EVEN IF IT'S YOUR OWN SPECIES.

Narrator: YET THERE'S A PROBLEM
WITH THE CANNIBAL SHARK THEORY.

USUALLY, A GREAT WHITE'S STOMACH
TEMPERATURE IS 25 DEGREES

HIGHER THAN
THE SURROUNDING WATER.

BUT THE TAG'S
THERMOMETER REVEALS

THAT THE MYSTERY PREDATOR'S
STOMACH TEMPERATURE

WAS SEVERAL DEGREES
HIGHER THAN THAT.

**

EXPERTS CONSIDER
WHAT OTHER PREDATOR

COULD ACCOUNT
FOR THE TEMPERATURE ANOMALY

AND IS BIG AND BAD ENOUGH
TO TAKE ON A GREAT WHITE.

THE ONLY THINK THAT I'VE EVER
ENCOUNTERED OR HEARD OF

THAT COULD FEED ON GREAT WHITE
SHARKS ARE KILLER WHALES.

Narrator: LIKE WOLVES,
KILLER WHALES HUNT IN PACKS,

UP TO 40 AT A TIME.

THEY WILL SURROUND THEIR VICTIM
AND USE DIFFERENT TECHNIQUES

TO DECEIVE THEM
AND COME IN AT DIFFERENT ANGLES.

**

Narrator: WHEN HUNTING BIG PREY
LIKE GREAT WHITES,

KILLER WHALES CAN TRANSFORM

INTO 40-MILE-PER-HOUR,
6-TON BATTERING RAMS.

Friedlaender: THEY'VE GOT
THESE SORT OF BLUNT HEADS.

THEY'RE MASSIVE ANIMALS.
THEY CAN GO VERY FAST,

AND THE FORCE
OF THE ANIMAL IMPACTING IT

IS PROBABLY ONE WAY
THEY COULD KILL IT.

Narrator: THE SATELLITE TRACKING
DATA TELLS INVESTIGATORS

THAT WHILE SHARK ALPHA
WAS ATTACKED IN SHALLOW WATER,

IT WAS THEN DRAGGED DOWN
TO TWICE THE KNOWN DEPTH

OF A KILLER WHALE DIVE.

THEY'RE MAMMALS.
THEY BREATHE AT THE SURFACE.

THEY NEED TO HUNT
AND STAY AT THE SURFACE.

AND HERE YOU HAVE A TAG THAT
SHOWS IT WENT TO 2,000 FEET.

Narrator:
THE DATA LEADS INVESTIGATORS

TO TURN THEIR ATTENTION
TO THE DEEP OCEAN,

HOME TO SOME OF OUR PLANET'S
MOST ALIEN

AND FORMIDABLE PREDATORS.

AND WHEN IT COMES TO ALIEN
AND FORMIDABLE,

LOOK NO FURTHER
THAN THE GIANT SQUID.

IF YOU'RE TRYING TO PICTURE
A GIANT SQUID, THINK THE KRAKEN

FROM THE "PIRATES
OF THE CARIBBEAN" MOVIES.

Stenstrom:
THESE THINGS ARE MASSIVE.

THEY CAN GROW
UP TO 60 FEET LONG,

AND THEY HAVE HOOKED SUCKERS
ON THEIR TENTACLES

AND CAN GRAB PREY
MORE THAN 30 FEET AWAY.

**

Narrator: GIANT SQUID RELY
ON BASKETBALL-SIZED EYES,

THE BIGGEST IN THE ANIMAL
KINGDOM, TO PENETRATE THE GLOOM,

SEARCHING FOR PREY.

SCARS DISCOVERED ON
40 FOOT-LONG SPERM WHALES

ARE EVIDENCE THAT THEY CAN
INFLICT HORRIFIC WOUNDS

ON SOME OF THE LARGEST
OCEAN PREDATORS.

IF A GIANT SQUID CAN CAUSE THIS
MUCH DAMAGE TO A SPERM WHALE,

WHAT'S TO SAY THAT IT CAN'T
DO THE SAME THING

TO A BIG GREAT WHITE?

Narrator: ANALYSIS
OF GIANT SQUID SPECIMENS

REVEALS A FLAW IN THIS ARGUMENT.

WHEN GIANT SQUAD
CONSUME THEIR PREY,

IT MUST PASS THROUGH
A HALF-INCH DIAMETER HOLE

IN THEIR DOUGHNUT-SHAPED BRAIN,

A HOLE TOO SMALL
TO SWALLOW THE SATELLITE TAG.

**

THE ATTACK DATA RECORDED
BY THE TAG

FORCES EXPERTS TO CONSIDER

IF A GIANT PREDATOR
UNKNOWN TO SCIENCE

IS LURKING IN THE OCEANS
OFF AUSTRALIA.

**

THE EXISTENCE OF SUCH
A CREATURE IS BACKED UP

BY EYEWITNESS ACCOUNTS
FROM THE 20th CENTURY.

Stenstrom: FISHERMEN HAVE
RECORDED SOMETHING UNIDENTIFIED

OFF OF THE WATERS OF AUSTRALIA,

SOMETHING THAT WAS MASSIVE.

Narrator: ONE SIGHTING IN 1918
RECOUNTS HOW A GHOSTLY WHITE,

150-FOOT-LONG CREATURE
EFFORTLESSLY SNATCHED

LOCAL FISHERMEN'S
HEAVY NETS AND CATCH.

FOLLOWING SEVERAL
OTHER SIGHTINGS

IN THE SOUTHERN OCEANS,

THE MYSTERY MONSTER BECOMES
KNOWN AS THE LORD OF THE DEEP.

**

FOLKLORE? MAYBE,

BUT THE NATIONAL OCEANIC
AND ATMOSPHERE ADMINISTRATION

CALCULATES THAT 95%
OF OUR OCEAN DEPTHS

REMAIN UNEXPLORED.

**

IN THE PAST TWO YEARS ALONE,

SCIENTISTS HAVE IDENTIFIED 3,000
NEW SPECIES OF MARINE ANIMALS,

INCLUDING A 25-FOOT-LONG
BEAKED WHALE.

I THINK IT'S EXTREMELY
EXCITING AND FASCINATING

THAT CREATURES LIKE THIS
COULD STILL EXIST UNDISCOVERED.

Narrator: SHARK ALPHA'S KILLER
MAY BE JUST ONE OF MANY

UNIDENTIFIED LARGE PREDATORS
IN OUR OCEANS.

Nelson:
THE OCEANS ARE A GIANT PLACE
THAT WE KNOW VERY LITTLE ABOUT.

THERE'S NO DOUBT IN MY MIND
THAT WE WILL ONE DAY

FIND ANOTHER MEGA-PREDATOR.

**

Narrator: COMING UP...
A HUNT FROM THE HEAVENS

FOR A LEGENDARY BIBLICAL RELIC.

Kourounis: IF THIS THING
ACTUALLY DOES EXIST,

THAT WOULD CHANGE EVERYTHING.

Narrator:
AND A TOWN-SWALLOWING LAKE.

Mosher: THE LAKE IS RISING
RAPIDLY, AND NOBODY KNOWS WHY.

IT'S A HUGE MYSTERY.

Narrator: AUGUST 2017.

A WorldView-3 SATELLITE
PASSES OVER A LAKE IN HAITI

ON THE CARIBBEAN ISLAND
OF HISPANIOLA.

IT CAPTURES AN IMAGE
OF A SERIES OF RECTANGLES

WITHIN THE WATERS OF LAKE AZUéI.

HIGHER MAGNIFICATION REVEALS
THAT THESE SHAPES ARE HOUSES,

HOUSES WIPED OUT IN A FLOOD.

Kays: YOU CAN SEE
THAT THIS WATER HAS RISEN

AND DESTROYED PEOPLE'S LIVES.

Narrator: WORRYINGLY,
SCIENTISTS CAN'T EXPLAIN

WHY THIS LAKE'S WATERS
ARE RISING.

LOCAL PEOPLE FIGHT FOR SURVIVAL
ON EVER-SHRINKING LAND.

Cerveny: THE PEOPLE
THAT WERE LIVING NEAR THIS LAKE

HAVE BEEN FORCED INTO
SMALLER AND SMALLER AREAS

BECAUSE THE LAKE HAS EXPANDED
INTO WHAT WAS THEIR LIVING AREA.

Narrator: MAKING MATTERS WORSE,
NOW THEIR TEMPORARY HOMES

ENCROACH UPON THE TERRITORY
OF A DEADLY PREDATOR,

THE CROCODILE.

Chamberlain: THESE ARE NOT JUST
ANY OLD CROCODILES.

THESE ARE AMERICAN CROCODILES,

WHICH ARE KNOWN TO BE
MORE AGGRESSIVE

AND DANGEROUS TO HUMANS.

Narrator:
WITH THE LOCALS RUNNING OUT
OF SAFE AREAS TO LIVE,

THE REPTILES SENSE AN EASY KILL.

Kays: YOU GOT TO FEEL
FOR THE PEOPLE HERE.

THEY'VE LOST THEIR HOMES.
THEY'VE LOST THEIR LIVELIHOODS.

AND NOW THEIR BACKYARD'S
INFESTED WITH CROCODILES.

**

Narrator: CLOSER INSPECTION
OF THE SATELLITE IMAGE

REVEALS THAT THIS IS NOT
THE ONLY LAKE THAT'S RISING.

THE NEARBY LAKE ENRIQUILLO
IS ALSO BURSTING ITS BANKS.

Chamberlain:
LAKE ENRIQUILLO IS THE LARGEST
LAKE IN ALL OF THE CARIBBEAN,

AND IT HAS DOUBLED IN SIZE,

MAKING IT 135 SQUARE MILES.

THAT'S THE SIZE OF ATLANTA.

**

Narrator: ON THE GROUND,
METEOROLOGISTS CONFIRM

WATER LEVELS HAVE RISEN
IN THE PAST HERE.

IN THE WET SEASON, HEAVY RAINS
MAKE THE LAKE OVERFLOW.

USUALLY, THIS IS REVERSED
IN THE DRY SEASON.

BURNING HOT TEMPERATURES
EVAPORATE THE WATER,

BUT THIS TIME, IT'S DIFFERENT.

Cerveny:
WHAT WE SEE HERE IS THAT, SINCE
2004, THE SATELLITE IMAGERY

SHOWS THAT THESE LAKES HAVE BEEN
STEADILY INCREASING,

AND THAT'S ALARMING.

**

Narrator: THE SATELLITE IMAGES
COME TO THE ATTENTION

OF SCIENCE JOURNALIST
DAVE MOSHER.

HE'S MADE THE TRIP
DOWN TO HAITI'S LAKE AZUéI

TO SEE IF EVIDENCE ON THE GROUND

CAN SHED LIGHT ON THE CAUSE
OF THE CATASTROPHE.

IT LOOKS LIKE THE LAKE
HAS ALMOST DOUBLED IN SIZE,

SWALLOWING FARMLAND
AND VILLAGES,

DISPLACING THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE.

Narrator:
FROM THE SATELLITE IMAGE,
HE CALCULATES THE LAKE LEVELS

HAVE RISEN 16 FEET IN 8 YEARS.

**

MOSHER'S ARRANGED TO MEET
A LOCAL BOAT OWNER

WHO'S WILLING TO TAKE HIM
TO THE DEVASTATED COMMUNITY

IN THE SATELLITE IMAGE.

**

WOW.

HOW MANY PEOPLE
USED TO LIVE THERE?

SO HOW MANY PEOPLE IN EACH ONE
OF THESE HOMES?

WOW.

-IN EACH ONE OF THESE.
-YES.

THIS IS CRAZY.

THERE ARE DOZENS
OF HOUSES OVER HERE.

ALL OF THESE FAMILIES
JUST HAD TO UP AND LEAVE

ON A MOMENT'S NOTICE
AS THE WATERS ROSE.

**

Narrator: FROM THE LAKESIDE,
MOSHER STUDIES THE LANDSCAPE.

HE NOTICES IT'S SURROUNDED

BY A SERIES OF STEEP,
MOUNTAINOUS SLOPES.

SEISMIC DATA CONFIRMS HIS BELIEF

THAT THE WHOLE AREA
IS GEOLOGICALLY UNSTABLE.

IT LOOKS LIKE
THERE'S A FAULT LINE

THAT RUNS RIGHT
UNDERNEATH THIS LAKE.

I'M WONDERING IF THIS HAS
SOMETHING TO DO

WITH THE RISING WATER LEVELS.

Narrator: HAITI SITS
PRECARIOUSLY ALONG THE BOUNDARY

OF TWO TECTONIC PLATES.

IT'S AN AREA OF INTENSE
SEISMIC ACTIVITY.

THE MAGNITUDE 7 EARTHQUAKE
THAT STRUCK THE ISLAND IN 2010

KILLED OVER 200,000 PEOPLE

AND CAUSED $14 BILLION
WORTH OF DAMAGE.

ONE POSSIBILITY MIGHT BE
THAT SEISMIC ACTIVITY

COULD RUPTURE AN UNDERGROUND
AQUIFIER AND ALLOW FOR THE WATER

TO SEEP UP TO THE SURFACE
AND CREATE THESE RISING LAKES.

**

Narrator: BUT PROVING THIS
THEORY IS ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE.

IF THERE IS SOME SORT
OF UNDERGROUND WATER SOURCE

THAT'S DISCHARGING
INTO THE LAKE,

IT WOULD BE REALLY HARD TO SPOT

AND REALLY HARD TO KNOW
IF IT WAS HAPPENING OR NOT.

Narrator: MOSHER RETURNS
TO THE SATELLITE IMAGE.

CLOSE TO THE LAKE, HE NOTICES
SIGNS OF INDUSTRIAL ACTIVITY.

[ MAN SPEAKS NATIVE LANGUAGE ]

Narrator: HE FINDS THE FORESTS
SURROUNDING THE LAKE

ARE A HUB
FOR CHARCOAL PRODUCTION.

Mosher:
I KNOW THAT HAITI AS A COUNTRY

RELIES HEAVILY ON CHARCOAL
FOR ENERGY, FOR COOKING FUEL,

SO I'M DRIVING RIGHT NOW TO SEE
IF THERE'S ANY CONNECTION

BETWEEN THAT
AND THE RISING LAKE.

**

Narrator: MOSHER LEARNS
THAT AROUND THE SAME TIME

AS THE WATERS BEGIN TO RISE,

INCREASED CHARCOAL PRODUCTION
CAUSES A SURGE IN DEFORESTATION.

Chamberlain:
THE IRONY OF ALL OF THAT IS THAT
CUTTING DOWN THOSE TREES,

THAT'S GOING TO CONTRIBUTE
TO WATER FLOW INTO THE LAKES

AND MAKE THE LAKES
RISE EVEN HIGHER.

Cerveny: DEFORESTATION
ALLOWS SOIL TO BE CARRIED

MORE EASILY BY RAINWATER
INTO THE LAKES.

WELL, AS YOU PUT SOIL DOWN
INTO THE BOTTOM OF THE LAKES,

YOU'RE BASICALLY CREATING
A HIGHER AND HIGHER LAKE LEVEL.

AND THAT ALLOWS
FOR INCREASED FLOODING.

Narrator: BUT LOCAL EXPERTS
AREN'T CONVINCED

THAT DEFORESTATION ALONE

COULD ACCOUNT FOR THE SCALE
OF THE FLOODING

DETECTED IN THE SATELLITE IMAGE.

WITHOUT ANSWERS,
SOME BEGIN TO CONSIDER

IF GREATER FORCES
COULD BE AT WORK.

Hoffman:
WHEN THERE'S REALLY NOBODY THAT
CAN TELL PEOPLE WHAT'S GOING ON,

WHEN SCIENCE DOESN'T HAVE
AN ANSWER THAT'S CLEAR-CUT,

PEOPLE TEND TO TURN
TO RELIGION FOR ANSWERS.

Narrator:
AND ON HAITI, THAT MEANS VODOU.

**

THE POPULAR IMAGE OF VODOU

IS THAT OF A
DEVIL-WORSHIPPING CULT.

WITCH DOCTORS CASTING
DEADLY SPELLS ON THEIR ENEMIES.

**

BUT THE TRUE NATURE OF VODOU
IS THAT OF A BENIGN RELIGION.

TODAY, NEARLY 5 MILLION
HAITIANS, HALF THE POPULATION,

PRACTICE VODOU.

AND WHEN A NATURAL
DISASTER STRIKES,

FOR SOME, VODOU SPIRITS
COME UNDER THE SPOTLIGHT.

Krueger:
THERE ARE WIDESPREAD BELIEFS
AMONG THE LOCAL POPULATION

THAT THE SPIRITS ARE TRYING
TO PUNISH THE HAITIAN PEOPLE

FOR SOME TYPE OF SIN
AGAINST THE LANDSCAPE

OR DOING SOMETHING WRONG.

**

Narrator: BUT FOR THOSE WHO LOST
EVERYTHING TO THE RISING WATERS,

THE IDEA OF ANGRY SPIRITS
WREAKING HAVOC

JUST DOESN'T STACK UP.

**

THERE ARE SO MANY EXPLANATIONS

FOR WHY THESE LAKE
LEVELS ARE RISING.

TO BE HONEST, THE THING
THAT WE DON'T UNDERSTAND

IS WHAT'S HAPPENING
ON THE LAKE BED.

TO GET AT THAT MYSTERY, WE'RE
GOING TO HAVE TO COME OUT HERE

AND DRILL BORE HOLES

AND SEE WHAT'S
GOING ON DOWN THERE.

Narrator: UNTIL SCIENTISTS CAN
SEE WHAT LIES BENEATH THE LAKE,

THE MYSTERY OF THE RISING WATERS
REMAINS UNSOLVED.

**

COMING UP...

THE SPECIAL FORCES
OF THE HIGH SEAS.

Chamberlain: THIS IS, LIKE,
A REAL GROUP OF SUPERHEROES,

GOOD AGAINST EVIL.

Narrator: AND A GHOST OF THE
ROMAN EMPIRE SEEN FROM SPACE.

Kays: IT LOOKS KIND OF
SNAKE-LIKE, AND YOU WONDER,

"WHAT'S CAUSED THAT?"

Narrator:
NORTHERN ITALY -- 2005.

A SATELLITE PASSES
HIGH OVER THE FIELDS OF SORBOLO

ON THE OUTSKIRTS OF PARMA.

IT CAPTURES AN IMAGE
OF A GHOSTLY CURVED LINE

SEEMINGLY EMBEDDED
IN THE LANDSCAPE.

IT'S A STRANGE
SEMI-CIRCULAR SHAPE.

IT HAS SOME SINUOUS LOOK TO IT.

IT'S REALLY STRANGE-LOOKING.

Kays: IT LOOKS KIND OF
SNAKE-LIKE, AND YOU WONDER,

"WHAT'S CAUSED THAT?"

Narrator:
WHAT MAKES THIS SHAPE INTRIGUING

IS THAT THIS PART OF ITALY
IS RENOWNED FOR ITS ARCHAEOLOGY.

RESEARCHERS WONDER
IF THE SATELLITE IMAGE

SUGGESTS ANCIENT SECRETS
LIE BENEATH.

**

THEY TURN TO LOCAL
HISTORICAL RECORDS

AND MAKE
AN INTRIGUING DISCOVERY.

THE RECORDS REVEAL THAT PARMA,
JUST 6 MILES AWAY,

WAS A MAJOR ROMAN SETTLEMENT
FROM 183 B.C.

UNTIL IT WAS OVERTAKEN
BY ATTILA THE HUN.

ONE POSSIBILITY COULD BE
THAT WE'RE ACTUALLY LOOKING

AT AN ANCIENT ROMAN RUIN
OF SOME TYPE.

Narrator: MARC D'ANTONIO STUDIES
THE SATELLITE IMAGE.

HE BELIEVES THE LINE'S SHAPE
COULD YIELD CLUES.

D'Antonio:
IF WE CONTINUE THIS MENTALLY AND
MAKE THIS INTO A FULL ELLIPSE,

MAYBE THIS IS A SITE
FOR GLADIATORIAL GAMES

OR CHARIOT RACES OR SOMETHING,

BECAUSE THIS IS PRETTY BIG

COMPARED TO THESE
HOUSES OUT HERE.

Narrator: OVAL AMPHITHEATERS
ARE CENTRAL TO ROMAN LIFE.

THE BIGGEST ARENA IN THE EMPIRE,
THE COLOSSEUM IN ROME,

HOLDS 50,000 SPECTATORS,

THEN 1/4
OF THE CITY'S POPULATION.

SOMETIMES, 2,000 GLADIATORS
ARE KILLED IN A SINGLE EVENT.

PEOPLE WOULD COME,
AND THEY WOULD BRING FOOD.

THEY WOULD WATCH.
THEY WOULD SHOUT.

THEY WOULD SCREAM
UNTIL THEY WERE HOARSE,

GAME AFTER GAME.

[ CHEERS AND APPLAUSE ]

**

Narrator: THE ROMANS ARE KNOWN
TO HAVE BUILT

230 AMPHITHEATERS
ACROSS THEIR EMPIRE.

BUT ARCHAEOLOGIST MARK HORTON
IS NOT CONVINCED

THE SATELLITE IMAGE
HAS UNCOVERED A NEW COLOSSEUM.

Horton: THE COLOSSEUM
IS AROUND 650 FEET,

AND THAT'S THE LARGEST KNOWN
AMPHITHEATER IN THE ROMAN WORLD.

THIS IS 1,500 FEET,
SO IT'S OVER TWICE THE SIZE.

I DON'T THINK THIS CAN BE
AN AMPHITHEATER.

THE SHAPE'S ROUGHLY RIGHT.

IT'S ACTUALLY FAR TOO LARGE.

Narrator: D'ANTONIO RE-ANALYZES
THE SATELLITE DATA

FOR FURTHER CLUES.

HE CONFIRMS THE CURVED LINE
ISN'T THE ONLY UNUSUAL FEATURE

CAPTURED BY SATELLITE.

NOW, IF WE LOOK
JUST A LITTLE BIT FARTHER NORTH

FROM THIS SPOT,

WE SEE THIS AREA HERE.

IT'S ACTUALLY GOT
SOME LINEAR MARKS --

NOT THESE LINES,
BUT WHAT'S IN BETWEEN.

THIS COULD BE THE REMAINS

OF AN ANCIENT ROMAN VILLA,
PERHAPS.

Narrator: THE SATELLITE IMAGE
COMES TO THE ATTENTION

OF ARCHAEOLOGISTS
FROM THE MUSEUM OF PARMA.

THEY EXCAVATE THE DARK,
RECTANGULAR SHAPES

AND FIND IMPORTANT
ROMAN ARTIFACTS.

Horton: ARCHAEOLOGISTS
HAVE FOUND CERAMICS

FROM THE FIRST CENTURY B.C.,

WHICH, OF COURSE, IS
THE BEGINNING OF THE GOLDEN ERA

OF ROMAN CULTURE
AND CIVILIZATION.

THIS IS THE PERIOD
OF THE GREAT PROSPERITY,

THE GREAT EXPANSION
OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE.

Narrator: AT THE HEIGHT
OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE,

THE WEALTHY ELITE
OWN VAST COUNTRY VILLAS,

STRETCHING TO 1,000 SQUARE FEET

WITH ROOM FOR 500 SLAVES.

VILLAS ARE PALATIAL IN STYLE.

THEY HAVE ELABORATE WALL PLASTER
AND MOSAICS.

THEY WOULD HAVE GARDENS
AND FOUNTAINS,

BUT THEY WERE
SURROUNDED BY FARMLAND

AND THESE WERE KIND OF LIKE
COUNTRY HOUSES, REALLY.

THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN
THE RESIDENCE

OF SOMEONE WHO WAS
QUITE WEALTHY,

EQUIVALENT TO, PERHAPS,

SOMEONE LIVING
IN THE HOLLYWOOD HILLS.

Narrator:
ACCORDING TO MANUSCRIPTS,
ROMAN COUNTRY VILLAS

WERE OFTEN POSITIONED
NEAR A BEND IN A MIGHTY RIVERS.

ANALYSTS BELIEVE
THIS COULD BE A VITAL CLUE

TO THE ORIGIN OF THE SINUOUS
SHADOW IN THE SATELLITE IMAGE.

SO, IF THIS WAS ACTUALLY
A WATERWAY

OR A RIVER MEANDER

THAT HAPPENED TO COME BY
NEAR THIS VILLA LOCATION,

THAT'S A PLACE TO BUILD.

THEY WOULD DO THAT.

YOU CAN SEE, VERY EASILY,

HOW A RIVER COURSE HAS MOVED

JUST A FEW MILES
ACROSS THE LANDSCAPE,

LEAVING BEHIND ITS REMNANTS

IN THESE CURVED OXBOWS.

Narrator: A SINGLE SATELLITE
IMAGE WITH A GHOSTLY OUTLINE,

GIVING EXPERTS A GLIMPSE
INTO THE LIVES OF ROMAN ELITES

AND REVEALING AN ECHO
OF A LONG-LOST LANDSCAPE.

CLEARLY, THERE'S SO MUCH
MORE TO LEARN

FROM USING THESE KIND
OF IMAGERY TO UNDERSTAND

WHAT THAT ROMAN
LANDSCAPE WAS LIKE.

THERE'S SO MUCH MORE
TO BE DISCOVERED.

**

Narrator: COMING UP...

SATELLITES SPOT SOMETHING
STRANGE IN THE HEART OF AFRICA.

Chamberlain:
IT'S NOT JUST AN ANOMALY.

THEY'RE EVERYWHERE.

YOU CAN SEE THOUSANDS OF THEM.

Narrator:
AND THE FORCES OF GOOD BATTLE
EVIL ON THE SEVEN SEASONS.

THEY WOULD HONOR THEIR COMRADES
BY BURYING THEM TOGETHER.

THAT COULD BE WHAT WE'RE LOOKING
AT IN THIS SATELLITE IMAGE.

Narrator: MARCH 2016.

A WorldView-2 SATELLITE
PASSES OVER A TINY SPECK OF LAND

IN THE MIDDLE
OF THE ATLANTIC OCEAN.

IT CAPTURES AN IMAGE
THAT BAFFLES ANALYSTS.

**

Chamberlain: IN ALL MY YEARS
LOOKING AT SATELLITE IMAGES,

I HAVE NEVER SEEN ANYTHING ELSE
THAT LOOKS LIKE THIS.

Krueger: WHEN I LOOK
AT THIS IMAGE, I CAN'T THINK

OF ANY RATIONAL EXPLANATION
FOR WHAT THIS THING IS.

IT'S REALLY WEIRD.

Narrator:
CLOSER ANALYSIS OF THE IMAGE

REVEALS A RING
OF SMALLER CIRCLES

MAKING UP ONE LARGE,
PERFECT CIRCLE.

**

EVEN STRANGER, THIS ODD PATTERN

IS SITTING ON ONE OF THE MOST
REMOTE PLACES ON EARTH --

ASCENSION ISLAND,

OVER 1,000 MILES FROM LAND
IN ALL DIRECTIONS.

Gough: ASCENSION ISLAND IS ABOUT
AS REMOTE AS YOU CAN GET.

WHEN SAILORS TALK ABOUT
THE END OF THE WORLD,

THIS IS BASICALLY IT.

**

Narrator:
ANALYSTS UNDERSTAND THAT
THE ISLAND EMERGED FROM THE SEA

AROUND A MILLION YEARS AGO,

AS THE TIP OF A MASSIVE
UNDERWATER MOUNTAIN

THAT PLUNGES NEARLY 11,000 FEET
TO THE OCEAN FLOOR.

MOST OF ITS 34 SQUARE MILES

IS A DESERT OF DORMANT
VOLCANIC VENTS.

HARDLY ANY VEGETATION
CAN GROW HERE.

EXPERTS FOCUS IN
ON THE SATELLITE IMAGE

LOOKING FOR ANY CLUES

THAT MAY REVEAL
THE PURPOSE OF THE ODD SHAPES.

IT LOOKS LIKE THEY'RE KIND OF
COMPRISED OF STONE.

IT KIND OF REMINDS ME
OF A CEMETERY, A GRAVEYARD,

A MONUMENT FOR A GROUP
OF PEOPLE WHO HAVE DEPARTED.

THE QUESTION IS WHO?

Narrator: INVESTIGATORS SEARCH
THE HISTORICAL RECORDS

FOR PAST INHABITANTS.

THEY DISCOVER THAT THE BRITISH
NAVY BUILT A STATION HERE

IN THE EARLY 1800s.

IN 1807, THE BRITISH
PASSED A LAW

THAT ABOLISHED THE SLAVE TRADE.

AND THE FOLLOWING YEAR, THEY
COMMISSIONED A GROUP OF SHIPS

KNOWN AS THE
WEST AFRICA SQUADRON

THAT PATROLLED THE WATERS
OF THE ATLANTIC

WITH THE AIM OF INTERCEPTING
AND STOPPING SLAVE SHIPS.

**

Narrator: THE SAILORS BOARDING
A SLAVE SHIP

WERE CONFRONTED
WITH THE MOST HELLISH SIGHT.

HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE WOULD
HAVE BEEN CHAINED TOGETHER,

HELD BELOW DECK
FOR MONTHS ON END.

THEY WOULD HAVE BEEN
IN STARVATION CONDITIONS.

IT WOULD HAVE BEEN A NIGHTMARE.

**

Narrator: FOR OVER 50 YEARS,
THE MEN OF THIS NAVAL FORCE

PUT THEMSELVES IN MORTAL DANGER,

BATTLING OVER 1,600 SLAVE SHIPS.

**

THE MEN OF THE WEST
AFRICAN SQUADRON WERE HEROES.

THEY WERE SMALL IN NUMBERS,

BUT THEY FREED 150,000 SLAVES.

THIS IS, LIKE, A REAL
GROUP OF SUPERHEROES,

GOING OUT LIKE THE AVENGERS,

RIGHTING WRONGS,
AND GOOD AGAINST EVIL.

IT'S JUST SO COOL
THAT THIS IS REAL HISTORY.

**

Narrator: ANALYSTS CONSIDER
THE POSSIBILITY

THAT THE PATTERN
IN THE SATELLITE IMAGE

MAY BE A GRAVEYARD FOR THE MEN
OF THE WEST AFRICA SQUADRON.

THEY FOUGHT TOGETHER.
THEY ATE TOGETHER.

THEY SLEPT IN THE SAME
CONFINES TOGETHER.

SO WHEN ONE DIED,
YOU CAN UNDERSTAND

THAT THEY WOULD HONOR
THEIR COMRADES

BY BURYING THEM TOGETHER.

THAT COULD BE WHAT WE'RE LOOKING
AT IN THIS SATELLITE IMAGE.

Narrator: BUT A CHECK
OF HISTORICAL RECORDS

REVEALS THAT NAVAL TRADITION
PUTS THIS THEORY IN DOUBT.

Krueger: ALTHOUGH MEMBERS OF
THE SQUADRON WOULD HAVE WANTED

TO MEMORIALIZE THEIR BROTHERS,

IT WAS MUCH MORE TYPICAL THAT
THEY WOULD HAVE BURIALS AT SEA.

Narrator:
THE IMAGE COMES TO THE ATTENTION

OF FORMER C.I.A. OPERATIVE
MIKE BAKER.

BAKER HAS SEEN
SIMILAR STRUCTURES

ON OTHER SATELLITE PHOTOS.

THERE'S SOME 60 OF THEM.

AND THEY'RE SPREAD
THROUGH 35 NATIONS.

Narrator: BAKER BELIEVES
THE STRUCTURES FORM PART

OF A GLOBAL MONITORING SYSTEM.

AND THEY ARE OUT THERE,
ESSENTIALLY LISTENING FOR...

[ EXPLOSION ]

**

Narrator: BAKER EXPLAINS THAT
THE STATIONS WERE SET UP IN 1996

TO POLICE
A UNITED NATIONS TREATY

OUTLAWING THE TESTING
OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS.

THE SYSTEM DETECTS
INFRASOUND WAVES

THAT ARE AT
SUCH A LOW FREQUENCY,

THEY'RE IMPOSSIBLE TO BE
PICKED UP BY THE HUMAN EAR.

LIKE THE SAME WAVES
EMITTED BY BLUE WHALES,

INFRASOUND WAVES TRAVEL
FOR THOUSANDS OF MILES

THROUGH OCEAN WATER
AND THICK ROCK.

**

THE 60 MONITORING STATIONS
ENCIRCLING THE EARTH

ARE SO SENSITIVE,

THEY CAN PICK UP AN EXPLOSION
AS SMALL AS A 1 KILOTON BLAST.

THAT'S 50,000 TIMES SMALLER
THAN THE BIGGEST NUCLEAR TEST.

**

BY PLACING THE STATIONS
OFTEN IN REMOTE PLACES

LIKE ASCENSION ISLAND,

THE U.N. HAS CREATED
A GLOBAL NET

THAT CAN DETECT
A NUCLEAR EXPLOSION

ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD.

FRANKLY, EVERYBODY SHOULD
SLEEP BETTER AT NIGHT,

KNOWING THAT WE HAVE
A SYSTEM LIKE THIS.

BECAUSE OTHERWISE,
WHAT ARE YOU DOING?

YOU'RE COUNTING ON THE GOOD WILL

OF POTENTIAL DESPOTS AND
DICTATORS LIKE KIM JONG-UN

TO POLICE THEMSELVES?

**

THE BUILDING IN
THE SATELLITE IMAGE,

IT MIGHT NOT LOOK LIKE MUCH --

A LITTLE BLACK BOX
IN THE MIDDLE OF THE OCEAN,

BUT IT'S ONE PART
OF A VERY IMPORTANT PUZZLE

TO KEEPING US AWAY
FROM NUCLEAR ARMAGEDDON.

**

Narrator: STILL TO COME...

HAVE SATELLITES FINALLY SOLVED

A 3,000-YEAR-OLD
BIBLICAL MYSTERY?

INSIDE IT ARE THE ORIGINAL
TEN COMMANDMENTS GIVEN TO MOSES

ON TOP OF MOUNT SINAI.

**

Narrator: OCTOBER 2014.

A WorldView-3 SATELLITE
PASSES OVER NORTHERN ETHIOPIA.

IT CAPTURES AN IMAGE

OF A SOLITARY CIRCULAR BUILDING
ON TOP OF A HILL

HIDDEN FROM CIVILIZATION
BY A DENSE FOREST.

AND IT'S NOT THE ONLY
ONE OF ITS KIND.

WHEN YOU START
EXPANDING THE IMAGE,

YOU START REALIZING THERE ARE
LOTS OF SIMILAR STRUCTURES

THROUGHOUT THE LANDSCAPE.

IT'S A REPEATING FEATURE,

AND THAT MAKES IT
WORTH INVESTIGATING.

IT'S SOMETHING
VERY SIGNIFICANT, CLEARLY,

TO HAVE BEEN BUILT
NUMEROUS TIMES

OVER AND OVER AGAIN
IN A SIMILAR FASHION.

SO, IT'S NOT JUST AN ANOMALY.

THEY'RE EVERYWHERE.

AND IF YOU LOOK AT THE COUNTRY
AS A WHOLE,

YOU CAN SEE THOUSANDS OF THEM.

**

Narrator:
INVESTIGATIONS ON THE GROUND

REVEAL THAT THESE BUILDINGS
ARE SIMPLE CHURCHES.

SOME ARE BELIEVED
TO SIT ON FOUNDATIONS

BUILT 1,500 YEARS AGO,

MAKING THEM AMONG THE FIRST
CHRISTIAN CHURCHES EVER BUILT.

**

ANALYSTS SEARCH
HISTORICAL RECORDS

FOR CLUES THAT MAY EXPLAIN

HOW AN ESTIMATED 3,000
NEAR-IDENTICAL CHURCHES

COME TO BE SCATTERED
THROUGHOUT ETHIOPIA

OVER 1,000 MILES
FROM THE HOLY LAND.

WE DON'T OFTEN THINK OF ETHIOPIA
AS A HOTBED FOR CHRISTIANITY.

BUT, IN FACT, THE EARLY
CHRISTIAN MISSIONARIES

WERE OFTEN PERSECUTED
IN THE ROMAN EMPIRE,

SO THEY FLED TO PLACES
LIKE ETHIOPIA.

IT WAS ALSO A SANCTUARY
FOR CHRISTIANITY.

IT WAS A PLACE WHERE YOU CAN
BRING SACRED RELICS

AND HAVE THEM STORED THERE
SAFELY AWAY

FROM THE PAWS
OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE.

**

Narrator: THROUGHOUT THE HISTORY
OF CHRISTIANITY,

IMPORTANT RELICS HAVE BEEN
LOCATED AROUND THE WORLD.

A FINGER OF JOHN THE BAPTIST IS
SAID TO LIE IN A KANSAS CHURCH,

THE BONES OF THE THREE WISE MEN
IN COLOGNE, GERMANY,

AND IN NOTRE DAME IN PARIS,
JESUS' CROWN OF THORNS.

INVESTIGATORS CONSIDER
IF THE ETHIOPIAN CHURCHES

ARE BUILT TO HOUSE
OR HIDE RELIGIOUS RELICS.

**

HISTORIANS STUDY ANCIENT
MANUSCRIPTS FOR CLUES.

THEY FIND A TRANSLATION
FROM THE 6th CENTURY

THAT CLAIMS THE MOST IMPORTANT
CHRISTIAN RELIC OF ALL

LIES HIDDEN
NOT WITHIN THE HOLY LAND,

BUT IN AN ETHIOPIAN CHURCH.

Gough: THERE IS NO RELIGIOUS
ARTIFACT MORE LEGENDARY,

MORE SIGNIFICANT
THAN THE ARK OF THE COVENANT.

**

THE ARK OF THE COVENANT
IS SAID TO BE THIS GILDED BOX.

IT'S GOLD, EMBELLISHED,

AND INSIDE IT ARE THE ORIGINAL
TEN COMMANDMENTS

GIVEN TO MOSES
ON TOP OF MOUNT SINAI.

**

Narrator:
THE OLD TESTAMENT STATES THAT
THE ARK WAS ORIGINALLY HOUSED

IN KING SOLOMON'S
FIRST TEMPLE IN JERUSALEM.

**

BUT THE TEMPLE IS DESTROYED
BY THE BABYLONIANS

IN THE 6th CENTURY B.C.

**

AND THE ARK DISAPPEARS.

[ DOORS SLAM ]

**

ACCORDING TO AN ANCIENT
ETHIOPIAN MANUSCRIPT,

THE ARK IS SAVED

AND BROUGHT
TO A FOREST-RINGED SHRINE.

HISTORIANS PINPOINT ITS LOCATION
TO A STRUCTURE

150 MILES NORTH OF THE CHURCH
IN THE SATELLITE IMAGE.

IF THIS THING ACTUALLY DOES
EXIST AND IS IN THIS CHURCH,

THAT WOULD CHANGE EVERYTHING.

THE SCARY THING IS THAT,
IF IT IS FOUND,

LEGEND SAYS IT WILL HARKEN IN
THE END OF THE WORLD,

THE APOCALYPSE.

Narrator: YET MANY NOW BELIEVE
THE SATELLITE IMAGE

CASTS DOUBT ON
THE ACCEPTED THEORY

SURROUNDING THE ARK'S
FINAL RESTING PLACE

BECAUSE IT CONFIRMS
THE EXISTENCE

OF THOUSANDS
OF ANCIENT CHURCHES,

ALL MATCHING THE DESCRIPTION
OF A SHRINE WITHIN A FOREST.

IF SOMEBODY'S TRYING TO TELL ME
THAT THE ARK OF THE COVENANT

IS HIDDEN IN A PARTICULAR
CHURCH IN ETHIOPIA,

THIS IS MISDIRECTION 101.

Kourounis:
THINK ABOUT THIS WAY.

IF YOU HAD THE WORLD'S
MOST COVETED ARTIFACT,

AND YOU TOLD EVERYONE IT'S
IN THIS ONE PARTICULAR SPOT,

GUARDED BY ONE PERSON,
WOULDN'T IT MAKE SENSE

TO ACTUALLY HIDE IT
SOMEPLACE ELSE?

HOW ABOUT A CHURCH
ON TOP OF A HILLTOP

IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE
IN ETHIOPIA?

Narrator: AS LEGEND HAS IT,
ONLY ONE MAN ON EARTH,

THE LONE KNIGHT
GUARDING THE ARK,

KNOWS ITS TRUE WHEREABOUTS.

PERHAPS THE ARK
IS SOMEWHERE SAFE,

JUST HIDDEN IN PLAIN SIGHT.