Original subtitles

Narrator: WE LIVE IN AN ERA OF UNPARALLELED FEAR AND PERIL.

[ SIREN WAILS ]

IN THESE TIMES OF TERROR,

EYES IN THE SKY UNCOVER NEW DANGERS ON LAND, SEA, AND AIR.

DURING THIS SPECIAL TWO-HOUR EDITION,

WE REVEAL THE LATEST, MOST BIZARRE,

AND SHOCKING THREATS CAPTURED BY SATELLITE,

AND, USING CUTTING-EDGE TECHNOLOGY,

SHED NEW LIGHT ON THE HORRORS OF THE PAST.

TERRIFYING NEW IMAGES OF A BLOB SWALLOWING A CITY.

RECENT SATELLITE PHOTOGRAPHY SHOWS IT'S OVERTAKEN

MOST OF THE NEIGHBORHOODS IN THIS AREA.

Phoenix: OH, WOW. THIS IS INSANE.

Narrator: CHINA'S HIDDEN TERROR CAMPS REVEALED AT LAST.

THIS IS A REALLY CLOSED COUNTRY,

SO WE RELY ON PICTURES FROM SPACE TO UNCOVER ATROCITIES.

Narrator: AND WE GAIN ACCESS TO AMERICA'S TOP-SECRET APOCALYPSE PYRAMID.

GOT THE DOOR OPEN.

GOOD GOD.

THAT IS INCREDIBLE.

Narrator: BAFFLING PHENOMENA.

MYSTERIES FROM SPACE.

WHAT ON EARTH ARE THEY?

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

[ BEEPING ] [ CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKING ]

[ WHIRRING ]

CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS

**

[ FREQUENCY WARBLES ] [ WHIRRING ]

THOUSANDS OF SATELLITES ORBIT OUR PLANET,

RECORDING OUR EVERY ACTION IN REAL TIME.

SOME HAVE CAPTURED THREATS NOT VISIBLE FROM THE GROUND

AND IDENTIFIED DISASTERS BEFORE THEY EVEN HAPPEN.

YET WHAT EYES IN THE SKY REVEAL ON MAY 28th, 2018

ABOVE THE ISLAND OF JAVA, INDONESIA,

IS A CATASTROPHE UNLIKE ANYTHING WITNESSED BEFORE.

EVERYTHING LOOKS FINE, NORMAL.

HOUSES, STREETS, BUILDINGS,

AND THEN SOME DARK MASS HAS STARTED TO TAKE OVER.

IT'S ALMOST LIKE A BOMB WENT OFF.

THE CITY'S JUST BEEN WIPED OFF THE MAP.

Narrator: KEN JOYCE DEPLOYS DigitalGlobe's HIGH-TECH

SecureWatch SOFTWARE TO INVESTIGATE.

IN 2005, THERE WAS NO EVIDENCE OF WHATEVER THIS IS.

BUT WHEN I GO BACK TO CURRENT-DAY IMAGERY,

I SEE A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT SCENE.

Narrator: A GIANT, GRAY BLOB APPEARS TO BE CONSUMING THE WHOLE AREA.

IT'S ALMOST AS IF IT'S ALIVE, LIKE THE BLOB FROM A 1950s

B-MOVIE THAT TAKES OVER SOME TOWN.

THIS IS DISTURBING.

Narrator: SCALE ANALYSIS REVEALS THE BLOB IS MASSIVE --

AROUND TWICE THE SIZE OF CENTRAL PARK.

AND THE LATEST IMAGES FROM SPACE SHOW IT'S GETTING BIGGER.

WHATEVER'S GOING ON HERE IS CLEARLY CATASTROPHIC

AND SHOWS NO SIGN OF LETTING UP.

Narrator: SATELLITE DATA CAN ONLY SHOW SO MUCH.

SO, GEOLOGIST JESS PHOENIX TRAVELS 8,000 MILES

FROM CALIFORNIA TO INVESTIGATE.

I'M TRYING TO FIGURE OUT IF THIS IS SOMETHING MAN-MADE

OR SOMETHING THAT'S A NATURAL OCCURRENCE,

AND I CAN'T PUT MY FINGER ON IT.

Narrator: THIS IS A DANGEROUS PLACE TO VISIT.

SINCE RECORDS BEGAN, INDONESIA HAS EXPERIENCED

OVER 1,000 VOLCANIC ERUPTIONS.

BUT CAN THIS EXPLAIN THE WEIRD GRAY MASS?

I'VE SEEN AREAS THAT HAVE BEEN DEVASTATED

BY VOLCANIC ERUPTIONS.

THIS IS A VERY DIFFERENT SORT OF APPEARANCE.

WE'VE GOT THIS ODD DEAD ZONE

AMIDST THIS REALLY VIBRANT, LIVING AREA.

I REALLY WANT TO KNOW MORE.

**

Narrator: GETTING CLOSER TO THE SITE IN THE IMAGE,

PHOENIX NOTICES SHOCKING SIGNS OF DEVASTATION.

OH, WOW.

**

THIS LOOKS LIKE IT WAS A MOSQUE.

**

BUT IT CERTAINLY ISN'T MUCH OF ANYTHING NOW.

**

Narrator: THE GRAY MASS APPEARS TO HAVE ENGULFED THESE HOMES

AT A TERRIFYING SPEED.

THE CURTAIN IS STILL HANGING ON THAT DOOR.

**

PHEW. IT'S REALLY EERIE.

IT'S ALMOST LIKE

SORT OF LIKE BEING IN A MODERN-DAY VERSION OF POMPEII.

**

WE ARE REALLY FAR FROM THE CENTER,

SO THIS IS JUST A VERY SMALL TASTE

OF WHAT THIS MUST HAVE BEEN LIKE.

Narrator: AS SHE APPROACHES THE BLOB, SHE FINDS EARTHWORKS.

THE AUTHORITIES HAVE BUILT AND REBUILT BARRIERS AND DIKES.

BUT NOTHING CAN CONTAIN THE FULL SCALE OF ITS HORROR.

Phoenix: OH, WOW.

THIS IS INSANE.

Narrator: THERE WAS ONCE A THRIVING COMMUNITY HERE,

NOW TOTALLY DEVOURED.

WHERE THERE WERE FAMILIES AND HOMES

IS A LANDSCAPE THAT LOOKS LIKE THE SURFACE

OF A DEAD ALIEN PLANET.

Phoenix: TO THINK ABOUT WHAT'S BURIED UNDERNEATH OF THIS NOW --

THE HOUSES, THE STORES, EVERYTHING.

IT'S THIS DESOLATE WASTELAND.

**

Narrator: PHOENIX WONDERS IF THE PLUME IN THE DISTANCE

OFFERS A CLUE.

Phoenix: SO, THAT PLUME OVER THERE, THAT'S NOT SMOKE.

IT LOOKS LIKE A GAS TO ME.

SO, LOOKS LIKE IT COULD BE SOMETHING VOLCANIC

UNDERNEATH OF THERE.

Narrator: BUT VOLCANOES DON'T NORMALLY SPEW A MONSTROUS SEA OF MUD.

Kourounis: THERE'S NO LAVA HERE.

THIS IS NOT A TYPICAL VOLCANIC ERUPTION.

Phoenix: THIS IS INSANE.

I REALLY WANT TO FIND OUT WHAT'S GOING ON.

Narrator: PHOENIX NEEDS LOCAL KNOWLEDGE

TO REACH THE ERUPTING PLUME OF GAS.

Phoenix: I'D LIKE TO GO AND GET CLOSER, IF WE CAN.

Narrator: PHOENIX IS AN EXPERIENCED VOLCANOLOGIST.

[ ENGINES START ]

SHE KNOWS IF THINGS GO WRONG OUT THERE,

SHE WILL HAVE TO MAKE A QUICK GETAWAY.

**

NO ONE IS SURE HOW THICK THE CRUST IS

AND HOW DEEP THE SEA OF MUD BENEATH THEM MAY BE.

OH. WOW.

THIS IS SOMETHING ELSE.

ABSOLUTELY MASSIVE.

Narrator: THE HEAVY BIKES ARE ONLY ABLE TO TAKE PHOENIX

SO CLOSE TO THE CENTER.

AS SHE GETS NEARER, IT BECOMES CLEAR

THE MUD MONSTER IS VERY MUCH ALIVE.

**

Phoenix: OH, YEAH.

THIS IS GEOTHERMALLY HEATED GAS

THAT WE'RE SEEING ERUPT FROM THE GROUND.

OH, WOW. THIS IS DEFINITELY A MUD VOLCANO.

BUT A MEGA MUD VOLCANO.

THIS IS INCREDIBLE.

MOST PEOPLE HAVEN'T EVEN HEARD OF A MUD VOLCANO.

BUT WHAT IT IS, IS, VOLCANICALLY,

YOU HAVE THESE SUPER-HEATED HOT WATERS,

THEY'RE RISING, PIERCING THROUGH MUD SEDIMENT LAYERS,

AND AS THEY COME UP THROUGH THAT, THEY MIX, CAUSING MUD,

IT FINALLY ERUPTS ON THE SURFACE.

Phoenix: THIS IS AN ENORMOUS OUTFLOW OF MUD.

I WOULD IMAGINE THAT THIS WOULD'VE JUST OBLITERATED

ANYTHING IN ITS PATH.

Narrator: FOR THE PEOPLE WHO LIVED HERE,

THE DESTRUCTION UNLEASHED BY THIS SLUDGE-BELCHING BEAST

WAS CATASTROPHIC.

YOU WOULD NOT WANT TO BE CLOSE TO ONE OF THESE THINGS

WHEN IT ERUPTS.

PHOENIX WANTS TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE DEVASTATING IMPACT

OF THIS VOLCANO.

IBUHAR AND HER FAMILY WERE FORCED TO FLEE THEIR HOME,

WHICH HAS BEEN DEVOURED BY THE BOILING MUD.

NICE TO MEET YOU.

AND SO HOW LONG DID IT TAKE FROM WHEN THE ERUPTION

STARTED UNTIL THE MUD REACHED IBUHAR'S HOUSE?

OKAY. SO, IN TWO WEEKS, YOU HAD TO LEAVE, THEN...

WOW.

THAT'S SO MUCH MUD.

OH, MY GOODNESS.

PHOENIX LEARNS THAT THE ERUPTING MUD

WAS HOT ENOUGH TO BURN SKIN FROM BONE.

IMAGINE A SMALL TOWN, PEOPLE GOING ABOUT THEIR BUSINESS,

AND THEN SUDDENLY, A GEYSER OF GAS

AND HOT MUD STARTS SPEWING FROM THE GROUND.

Narrator: IBUHAR TELLS PHOENIX THAT THE MUD MONSTER

FIRST ERUPTED BACK IN 2006.

EVER SINCE, IT'S BEEN GROWING AND GROWING,

SEEMINGLY UNSTOPPABLE.

UP TO 6 MILLION CUBIC FEET OF MUCK SPEW OUT EVERY DAY,

ENOUGH TO FILL 72 OLYMPIC-SIZED SWIMMING POOLS.

THE FLOOD IS RELENTLESS, COVERING HOMES,

RICE PADDIES, BUSINESSES,

BASICALLY A TIDE OF SLUDGE OVERTAKING THE LANDSCAPE.

Narrator: THE UNSTOPPABLE MUD TSUNAMI HAS CAUSED

60,000 PEOPLE TO FLEE THEIR HOMES.

AUTHORITIES WORK AROUND THE CLOCK

TO TRY TO STEM THIS TIDE OF TERROR.

THEY'VE TRIED EVERYTHING, BUT NOTHING CAN STOP MOTHER EARTH.

THE MUD IS STILL COMING, IT'S STILL FLOWING.

WHO KNOW WHEN IT'S GOING TO STOP.

Narrator: PHOENIX WANTS TO KNOW WHAT COULD CAUSE

SUCH A DEVASTATING ERUPTION.

COULD YOU SEE ANYTHING WHEN THE ERUPTION STARTED?

Narrator: THE ERUPTION WAS OUT OF SIGHT ACCORDING TO IBUHAR

BECAUSE IT WAS SHIELDED BY WALLS ERECTED BY A DRILLING COMPANY.

WOW. THAT'S SCARY.

SO, YOU CAN'T SEE IT, YOU CAN ONLY HEAR IT.

Narrator: THE DRILLING COMPANY WAS LOOKING FOR OIL AND GAS.

WHAT THEY FOUND, IT SEEMS, WAS A GIGANTIC UNDERGROUND SEA

OF VOLCANICALLY HEATED PRESSURIZED WATER.

IN THIS INSTANCE, IT SEEMS LIKE A BOREHOLE WAS APPLIED

INTO A LOCATION THAT WAS PRESSURIZED.

AND MAYBE IT BROUGHT AN UNCAPPING,

AN UNBOTTLING, AN UNCORKING OF THIS PRESSURIZED MUD,

AND, POOF!

OUT IT GOES.

BY DESTABILIZING THE SUBSURFACE,

YOU CREATE A NEW FRACTURE, ESSENTIALLY,

AND IT GAVE A PASSAGEWAY

FOR LOTS AND LOTS OF MUD TO COME OUT.

IT'S PRETTY SAFE TO SAY THAT EVERYTHING THAT COULD GO WRONG

DID GO WRONG FOR THESE PEOPLE AND FOR THIS COMMUNITY.

Narrator: THE INDONESIAN GOVERNMENT AND THE OIL

EXPLORATION COMPANY DISPUTE THIS ACCOUNT.

THEY MAINTAIN THE ERUPTION WAS A FREAK NATURAL EVENT.

Phoenix: MOST OF THE PEOPLE I'VE TALKED TO WHO'VE BEEN HERE

LOCALLY SAID THAT THIS WOULDN'T HAVE HAPPENED

IF THEY HADN'T BEEN DRILLING IN THAT AREA.

I THINK WE HAD A PERFECT STORM.

YOU'VE GOT AN UNDERLYING VOLCANIC SYSTEM,

BUT YOU ALSO HAVE, IN THIS CASE, HUMAN ERROR.

Narrator: WE MAY NEVER KNOW FOR SURE WHO OR WHAT IS TO BLAME

FOR THE CATACLYSMIC MUD VOLCANO CAPTURED BY SATELLITE.

THE ONLY INESCAPABLE TRUTH IS THAT,

FOR IBUHAR AND THOUSANDS OF OTHERS LIKE HER,

THE DEVASTATION IT HAS INFLICTED IS FAR FROM OVER.

IT WAS REALLY DIFFICULT TO TALK TO IBUHAR AND HEAR HER STORY

BECAUSE IT'S SOMETHING THAT MOST PEOPLE

WILL NEVER HAVE TO DEAL WITH, THAT SORT OF UNEXPECTED DISASTER

THAT JUST OBLITERATES YOUR ENTIRE LIFE,

AND FORCES YOU TO MAKE DECISIONS

THAT YOU'VE NEVER THOUGHT YOU'D HAVE TO.

IT'S VERY SOBERING.

**

Narrator: COMING UP, NEW IMAGES UNCOVER LONG-HIDDEN DANGERS

IN THE DESERTS OF AFRICA.

IT WAS AN OPERATION STRAIGHT OUT OF A HOLLYWOOD FILM.

AND SATELLITES IDENTIFY A TERRIFYING NEW THREAT

IN THE DESERTS OF IRAN.

IT'S INCREDIBLY RISKY TO SEND SPIES THERE.

SO, WE REALLY HAVE TO RELY ON SATELLITE IMAGES

TO TELL WHAT'S GOING ON.

**

**

Narrator: APRIL 23rd, 2017.

A SATELLITE CAPTURES AN IMAGE

WHICH MIGHT BE A CRESCENT OF AMERICAN OR EUROPEAN HOUSES.

WHAT PUZZLES ANALYSTS IS THE LOCATION.

IT LOOKS LIKE WE'RE JUST LOOKING AT A BUNCH OF HOUSES HERE.

I MEAN, I WOULDN'T UNDERSTAND WHY THAT'S REMARKABLE.

BUT THEN, AS YOU ZOOM OUT, YOU FIND OUT YOU ARE

IN THE MIDDLE OF NOTHING.

Narrator: THIS IS A REMOTE DESERT REGION IN SUDAN,

ONE OF THE MOST SPARSELY POPULATED PLACES ON THE PLANET.

WHAT'S MORE, ALMOST HALF A MILLION PEOPLE HAVE DIED HERE

IN CONFLICTS IN RECENT TIMES.

[ INDISTINCT YELLING ]

IN EVERY WAY IMAGINABLE,

THIS IS NO PLACE TO BUILD A SUBURB.

NOT ONLY IS THERE NO INFRASTRUCTURE HERE,

YOU DON'T KNOW WHEN A WAR MIGHT BREAK OUT.

WHO WOULD BUILD THIS LINE OF BUILDINGS LIKE THIS

IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE?

SOMETHING STRANGE IS GOING ON.

Narrator: EX-CIA OPERATIVE MIKE BAKER HAS SPENT DECADES STUDYING

AND WORKING IN WAR ZONES.

WHEN HE UNEARTHS THE COMPOUND'S OWNERSHIP RECORDS,

HE FINDS SOMETHING UNEXPECTED.

IT'S A RESORT OF SORTS.

I MEAN, THAT MUCH IS CLEAR.

THE QUESTION, OF COURSE, IS WHO'S BEHIND IT?

AND WHEN YOU SCRATCH THE SURFACE,

IT LOOKS AS IF IT'S A SWISS COMPANY.

Narrator: THE RESORT WAS SUDDENLY ABANDONED DECADES AGO.

WHEN HE CONTACTS COLLEAGUES IN THE INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY,

THE MYSTERY DEEPENS.

AS IT TURNS OUT, THE SWISS COMPANY IS A FRONT

WHEN YOU REALLY START PEELING AWAY THE LAYERS.

THE EXTRAORDINARY THING IS THAT IT APPEARS TO BE RUN BY ISRAEL.

Narrator: BAKER IS BAFFLED WHY ISRAEL WOULD RUN

A SWISS-REGISTERED RESORT IN A WAR-TORN MUSLIM COUNTRY.

HE TRACKS DOWN AN EX-EMPLOYEE OF THE RESORT

WHO AGREES TO REVEAL HIS STORY,

BUT ONLY IF THEY MEET FACE-TO-FACE...

IN LONDON.

**

GAD SHIMRON TELLS BAKER HE WAS BASED IN THE SUDAN

IN THE EARLY 1980s.

LET'S GET OFF THE BRIDGE AND WE'LL, UH, FIND A PLACE TO TALK.

I'VE GOT A LOT OF QUESTIONS FOR YOU.

Narrator: HE REVEALS HE IS A FORMER FIELD OPERATIVE

FOR THE ISRAELI INTELLIGENCE AGENCY MOSSAD.

WHAT WAS A SWISS COMPANY DOING RENTING

AN ABANDONED SUDANESE VILLAGE?

WELL, MIKE, THE COMPANY WAS AS SWISS

AS MY CHINESE PLASTIC WATCH.

**

BAKER LEARNS THAT, ALMOST FOUR DECADES AGO,

ANOTHER MOSSAD OPERATIVE APPROACHES SHIMRON

ABOUT A POSSIBLE COVERT MISSION NEAR THE SITE IN THE IMAGE.

HE TOLD ME, "I NEED YOU BECAUSE YOU SPEAK ARABIC,

YOU HAVE OPERATIONAL EXPERIENCE, YOU HAVE SOME NAVAL BACKGROUND.

I NEED YOU."

SHIMRON LEARNS THAT THOUSANDS OF ETHIOPIAN JEWS

SUFFERING FAMINE, PERSECUTION,

AND TORTURE IN THEIR HOME COUNTRY

HAVE FLED TO NEIGHBORING SUDAN.

[ SPEAKING NATIVE LANGUAGE ]

Narrator: THEY BELONG TO A COMMUNITY CALLED BETA ISRAEL,

WHO, IT IS RUMORED, ARE DESCENDED FROM AN ANCIENT TRIBE

LED BY THE SONS OF MOSES.

THEY LIVED IN AFRICA,

SEPARATED FROM THE MAIN STREAM OF JUDAISM FOR OVER 1,000 YEARS,

AND THEY KEPT THEIR JEWISH IDENTITY

IN VERY HOSTILE ENVIRONMENT OF ETHIOPIA.

1,500 DIED DURING THE EXODUS FROM ETHIOPIA,

VICTIMS OF HUNGER AND MURDEROUS BANDITS.

BUT MORE HORRORS AWAIT THEM.

THE SUDANESE MILITARY IMPRISONS

SURVIVORS IN HUGE DISEASE-RIDDEN CAMPS

WHERE DEATH IS A DAILY THREAT.

THEY HAD TO HIDE THEIR IDENTITY

BECAUSE SUDAN IS AN ARAB-MUSLIM COUNTRY.

THE REFUGEE CAMPS IN GAZA, LET'S SAY, ARE BEVERLY HILLS

IN COMPARISON TO THOSE IN THE SUDAN AT THE TIME.

FACING POSSIBLE ANNIHILATION, AGENTS WORKING IN THE CAMPS

REACH OUT TO THE ISRAELI GOVERNMENT FOR HELP.

WHEN THE NEWS ABOUT THE PLIGHT OF THE JEWS IN SUDAN

CAME TO JERUSALEM, PRIME MINISTER BEGIN,

HE CALLED THE CHIEF OF THE MOSSAD

AND GAVE HIM AN ORDER -- "BRING ME THE JEWS OF ETHIOPIA."

HE LOOKED AT THE PRIME MINISTER AND SAID, "OKAY, WE'LL DO IT."

USING A SWISS COMPANY AS A FRONT,

MOSSAD PURCHASES A HOLIDAY RESORT ON THE RED SEA.

TOURISTS FLOCK IN, AS DO MOSSAD AGENTS POSING AS EMPLOYEES.

SO, MOSSAD SETS UP BASE AT A DIVE CAMP IN THE SUDAN.

THAT'S A SPYING OPERATION.

WE WERE CLUB MED.

SOME OF US WERE DIVING INSTRUCTORS.

I WAS A WINDSURFING INSTRUCTOR, FOR EXAMPLE.

SHIMRON AND HIS TEAM PLAN TO RESCUE

THE STRANDED ETHIOPIAN JEWS BY SMUGGLING THEM

FROM THE MILITARIZED ZONE TO THE SITE IN THE IMAGE.

"OPERATION BROTHERS" BEGINS.

GAD, WALK ME THROUGH THE MECHANICS OF THIS.

WHAT WAS THE PROCESS TO ACTUALLY MOVE THESE REFUGEES?

THE CONCEPT OF THE OPERATION WAS VERY SIMPLE.

IT'S A PURE ZIONIST JAMES BOND OPERATION.

WHILE THEIR OBLIVIOUS GUESTS SLEEP,

SHIMRON AND HIS CREW DRIVE EMPTY TRUCKS

HUNDREDS OF MILES TO PRE-ARRANGED PICK-UP POINTS

ALONG ROADS PEPPERED WITH MILITARY CHECKPOINTS.

LET ME STOP YOU THERE.

THE MILITARY ROAD BLOCKS, ALRIGHT?

THE POLICE ROAD BLOCKS.

YOU'D HAVE TO STOP AT THESE THINGS.

IF YOU WOULD'VE ATTACHED A BLOOD PRESSURE DEVICE

TO THE ARM OF EACH OF US, THE DEVICE WOULD'VE EXPLODED.

SHIMRON RELIES ON A COVER STORY OF RECRUITING LABORERS

TO SLIP THROUGH THE ROAD BLOCKS.

UNDER COVER OF NIGHT, THE MOSSAD TEAM FILL THE TRUCKS

WITH STARVING REFUGEES

AND STEAL THEM BACK TO THE RED SEA DIVING RESORT.

INSIDE THE TRUCKS,

THERE WERE HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE CRAMPED TOGETHER.

NOT A SINGLE CRY CAME OUT.

ON THE BEACH, ISRAELI NAVY S.E.A.L.S.

LOAD THEIR HUMAN CARGO ONTO BOATS AND FERRY THEM TO SAFETY.

BUT AFTER SEVERAL SUCCESSFUL EXTRACTIONS, DISASTER STRIKES.

ONE NIGHT, WE WERE AMBUSHED BY THE SUDANESE ARMY UNIT.

I RAN TO THE BOAT, THE NAVY S.E.A.L.S.

PUSHED IT INTO THE WATER, AND MANAGED TO GET AWAY

BEFORE THE SUDANESE SOLDIERS ARRIVED.

THE NEAR MISS FORCES THE MOSSAD TEAM TO SWITCH TACTICS.

USING INSIDERS IN THE REFUGEE CAMPS,

THEY SMUGGLE HUNDREDS INTO THE DESERT

AND AIRLIFT THEM TO FREEDOM

USING C-130 MILITARY TRANSPORT PLANES.

SO, IN OTHER WORDS, YOU DON'T HAVE AN AIR STRIP,

AND NOW YOU'RE JUST DROPPING

A C-130 RIGHT ONTO THE DESERT FLOOR.

THERE WAS NO RULE IN THE MANUAL OF COVERT OPERATION

THAT WAS NOT BROKEN IN THIS OPERATION.

[ LAUGHS ]

[ INDISTINCT TALKING ]

OVER THE COURSE OF THREE YEARS,

THE MOSSAD SQUAD RESCUES OVER 6,000 PEOPLE

AND TRANSPORTS THEM TO ISRAEL TO BEGIN NEW LIVES.

IT'S AN ASTOUNDING STORY

BECAUSE IT COULD'VE GONE SOUTH

AT ANY MOMENT. MM-HMM.

DID YOU EVER FEAR FOR YOUR LIFE?

TIME AFTER TIME, WE WERE SO CLOSE TO DISASTER.

TIME AFTER TIME.

AND EVERY TIME, SOMEHOW, WE MANAGED TO DO IT.

THE DETAILS OF THIS EPIC MISSION REMAINED SECRET FOR DECADES.

BUT THE LEGACY OF SHIMRON'S EXTRAORDINARY TALE REMAINS,

CAPTURED FROM SPACE.

COMING UP, NEW IMAGES OF AUSTRALIA'S FREAKIEST TOWN.

I'VE NEVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE THIS IN MY LIFE.

Narrator: AND SATELLITES DISCOVER THE STEALTH SHIP

STEALING YOUR SECRETS.

IT'S EVERYTHING FROM CREDIT CARD NUMBERS

TO CLASSIFIED INFORMATION THAT'S USED FOR MILITARY OPERATIONS.

**

**

Narrator: IN RECENT YEARS, SATELLITES HAVE UNCOVERED DISTURBING SIGNS

OF RUSSIAN MILITARY AGGRESSION.

YET, THE LATEST EVIDENCE FROM SPACE OF THIS RED TERROR

ISN'T VISIBLE TO THE NAKED EYE.

AROUND THE WORLD'S OCEANS,

SHIPS SEND BLIPS OF DATA TO SATELLITES USING AUTOMATED

IDENTIFICATION SYSTEM TRANSPONDERS, OR AIS.

AIS IS A MARITIME TRACKING SYSTEM

THAT ALLOWS YOU TO KNOW WHO'S WHERE AT ANY GIVEN TIME,

ANY GIVEN PLACE.

IT'S AN INTERNATIONAL SYSTEM,

AND IT ALLOWS AN INTERNATIONAL PICTURE OF THE WORLD'S WATERS.

Narrator: ON NOVEMBER 18th, 2017,

A TRANSPONDER SIGNAL ON THE RUSSIAN SHIP,

THE YANTAR, VANISHES OFF THE WEST COAST OF AFRICA.

ONE SECOND IT'S THERE, THE NEXT, IT'S GONE.

IT'S LIKE A GHOST SHIP.

Narrator: THE YANTAR'S LAST KNOWN LOCATION IS THE GULF OF GUINEA,

A WATERWAY PLAGUED BY HURRICANES AND PIRATES.

THE GULF OF GUINEA OFF THE ANGOLAN COAST,

IT'S, LIKE, SEABORNE ANARCHY.

Munoz: IT COULD'VE BEEN HIJACKED BY PIRATES, IT COULD'VE BEEN SUNK.

WHATEVER IT IS, IT'S GONNA BE PRETTY BAD.

Narrator: SEVEN DAYS LATER,

THE YANTAR DOES SOMETHING WEIRD.

AND ALL OF A SUDDEN, THIS SHIP JUST APPEARS BACK ON THE RADAR,

OUT OF NOWHERE.

Narrator: THE RUSSIAN SHIP'S MAGIC ACT

DRAWS IMMEDIATE SUSPICION.

WHEN IT DISAPPEARS OFF THE GRID, YOU HAVE TO ASSUME

IT'S BECAUSE IT'S ENGAGED IN SOME SORT OF ACTIVITY

THAT IT WANTS TO CONCEAL.

Narrator: ANALYSTS STUDY THE YANTAR'S HISTORY.

AERIAL IMAGES REVEAL THAT THE 5,200-TON VESSEL'S HOMEPORT

IS OLENYA GUBA, ON THE BARENTS SEA.

IF YOU ASK THE RUSSIANS WHAT THE YANTAR IS,

THEY WILL TELL YOU THAT IT IS A HARMLESS,

PEACE-LOVING RESEARCH VESSEL

DESIGNED TO GATHER INFORMATION ABOUT THE ENVIRONMENT.

Narrator: YET, SATELLITE TRACKING DATA SUGGESTS OTHERWISE.

Munoz: FOUR MONTHS AFTER THE YANTAR ENTERS THE RUSSIAN NAVY,

IT'S DISCOVERED A COUPLE OF MILES

OFF THE COAST OF GUANTANAMO BAY, WHICH IS DEFINITELY SOMETHING

THAT RAISES ALARM BELLS IN WASHINGTON.

Narrator: FOLLOWING ITS MISSION TO GUANTANAMO,

ANALYSTS TRACK THE YANTAR TO ANOTHER GLOBAL MILITARY HOTSPOT.

Albertson: THE YANTAR SHOWS UP GOING THROUGH THE BOSPHORUS STRAITS,

AND THEN IT HEADS OUT TO CYPRUS,

AND THEN IT LOITERS AROUND SYRIA.

THE STRANGE THING IS, WHEN THE YANTAR IS STATIONED

OFF THE COAST OF SYRIA,

THERE WERE WIDESPREAD OUTAGES OF INTERNET CONNECTION.

THE TIMING IS PERFECT.

SO, THE QUESTION IS, IS THAT SHIP SOMEHOW INVOLVED?

Narrator: TECHNOLOGY EXPERT MIKE CAPPS RETURNS TO SATELLITE DATA.

LOOKS LIKE THE YANTAR IS IN A HOLDING PATTERN,

BUT IF YOU LOOK IN CLOSER,

YOU CAN SEE IT'S NOT A HOLDING PATTERN.

THIS IS A SEARCH PATTERN, PARALLEL LINES.

IT'S LOOKING FOR SOMETHING.

Narrator: A CLUE TO THE YANTAR'S ACTIVITIES

COMES FROM A RUSSIAN PARLIAMENT REPORT.

IT DETAILS THAT SHE IS EQUIPPED WITH TWO MINI SUBS

CAPABLE OF DIVING TO A DEPTH OF OVER 20,000 FEET.

Capps: THEY'RE QUICK AND NIMBLE

AND HAVE A WIDE RANGE OF OPERATING PARAMETERS.

THE YANTAR IS REALLY A MOTHER SHIP, RIGHT?

ANY TIME IT TAKES A PAUSE,

THERE COULD BE A LOT GOING ON UNDER THE WATER,

AND WE HAVE NO IDEA WHAT THAT IS.

Narrator: WHEN ANALYSTS CLOSELY STUDY

SEVERAL OF THE YANTAR'S KNOWN LOCATIONS,

THEY DISCOVER A DISTURBING CONNECTION.

Capps: EVERY TIME IT STOPS AND AMBLES FOR A LITTLE BIT,

WHETHER IT'S GUANTANAMO BAY, OR ANGOLA COAST, OR SYRIA,

THERE WAS AN UNDERSEA CABLE THERE.

Narrator: THE OCEAN FLOORS CONCEAL OVER 700,000 MILES

OF COMMUNICATION CABLES,

ENOUGH TO CIRCLE THE EARTH 28 TIMES.

THEY CARRY DATA FROM $10 TRILLION

WORTH OF BUSINESS EVERY DAY.

Munoz: IT'S EVERYTHING FROM CREDIT CARD NUMBERS,

AND IDENTIFICATION INFORMATION, ALL THE WAY TO CLASSIFIED

INFORMATION THAT'S USED BY THE U.S.

AND ITS ALLIES IN TERMS OF MILITARY OPERATIONS.

Narrator: SOME MILITARY ANALYSTS FEAR THE SHIP

COULD USE ITS DEEP-SEA SUBS TO HARVEST THIS DATA.

ANYBODY IN THE INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY,

ANYBODY IN THE MILITARY LOOKS AT THE YANTAR

AND UNDERSTANDS WHAT ITS PURPOSE IS.

IT'S A SPY SHIP.

Narrator: SUBSEQUENT TRACKING DATA REVEALS

THE YANTAR APPEARS TO BE SYSTEMATICALLY MAPPING

THE WEST NETWORK OF UNDERSEA CABLES.

NOW, THE REASON THAT'S IMPORTANT IS IF THERE EVER IS A CONFLICT

BETWEEN RUSSIA AND THE WEST,

THE FIRST THING YOU WANT TO DO IS CUT COMMUNICATIONS.

YOU OPEN UP YOUR BIG FILE FOLDER,

AND YOU GO, "AH, OKAY, HERE.

THIS CABLE, THIS ONE, THIS ONE, THIS ONE."

IT SOUNDS LIKE SOMETHING OUT OF A SPY NOVEL.

BUT THAT'S HOW THE REAL WORLD WORKS.

Narrator: PRESIDENT VLADIMIR PUTIN HAS RECENTLY

ANNOUNCED PLANS TO EXPAND

RUSSIA'S FLEET OF SO-CALLED "RESEARCH VESSELS."

IT SEEMS THE YANTAR IS JUST THE OPENING SALVO

IN A POTENTIALLY CATASTROPHIC SUB-SEA CYBER WAR.

Baker: PUTIN CAN SAY WHAT HE WANTS,

BUT IF THE YANTAR IS A PEACEFUL SHIP,

A UNICORN IS GONNA FLY OUT MY ASS.

[ LAUGHS ]

**

Narrator: COMING UP, A NEW IMAGE OF HELL.

THINK OF THE GROSSEST, MOST TERRIFYING PARASITE YOU CAN,

TRIPLE IT, AND THEN GIVE IT WINGS.

Narrator: AND HAVE EYES IN THE SKY FOUND SPIDER-ZILLA?

IF YOU'RE AN ARACHNOPHOBIC PERSON,

THAT'S, LIKE, YOUR WORST NIGHTMARE.

**

**

Narrator: MAY 15th, 2018, COLORADO, USA.

A PLANE FLYING 70 MILES TO THE NORTH OF DENVER

CAPTURES THIS IMAGE.

THERE'S GREEN EVERYWHERE,

AND THEN RIGHT ACROSS THE MIDDLE OF THIS LANDSCAPE, SPLAT!

IT'S JUST WHITE ALL THE WAY ACROSS.

IT'S SO WEIRD.

IT LOOKS LIKE SOMEBODY SPILLED A GIANT

CAN OF PAINT ON THE LANDSCAPE.

Narrator: THE MYSTERY SPLAT IS 2 1/2 MILES LONG.

GROUND TEMPERATURES OF 70 DEGREES RULE OUT

ONE OBVIOUS EXPLANATION.

IT LOOKS LIKE SNOW, BUT THIS IMAGE WAS TAKEN IN MAY,

AND THIS IS NOT IN THE MOUNTAINS.

SO, THIS CAN'T BE SNOW.

Narrator: THE WHITE MASS IS FAMILIAR TO ENTOMOLOGIST

ELEANOR SPICER RICE.

THIS IMAGE BRINGS UP MEMORIES OF A CURIOUS INCIDENT

THAT HAPPENED IN GOULBURN, AUSTRALIA.

Narrator: ON THE MORNING OF APRIL 27th, 2015,

GOULBURN'S RESIDENTS EXPERIENCE A BIZARRE VISITATION

FROM THE HEAVENS.

PEOPLE WOKE UP, AND THEY FOUND THE WHOLE TOWN

COVERED IN THIS MYSTERIOUS WHITE STUFF.

Narrator: THE TOWN IS ENVELOPED IN A GIANT WEB,

ONE SEEMINGLY SPUN BY SPIDER-ZILLA.

THESE THREADS WERE EVERYWHERE.

THEY WERE COVERING PEOPLE'S HOUSES, PEOPLE'S TREES.

Narrator: EVEN MORE TERRIFYINGLY,

THIS MEGA-WEB HAS BEEN CREATED

BY MILLIONS OF CANNIBAL SPIDERS RAINING FROM THE SKY.

THE STORY BEGINS SOON AFTER THE HORDE OF ARACHNIDS ARE BORN.

THE BABY SPIDERS NEED TO GET AWAY FROM THEIR NEST MATES

AS SOON AS THEY'RE ABLE TO

SO THAT THEY DON'T EAT EACH OTHER.

THEY STICK THEIR ABDOMENS IN THE AIR AS HIGH AS THEY CAN,

AND THEY CAST TINY FILAMENTS OF SILK INTO THE AIR.

Narrator: THIS BEHAVIOR IS CALLED BALLOONING.

THE AIR COMBINED WITH THE EARTH'S ELECTROSTATIC FIELDS

WILL PICK UP THESE FILAMENTS,

AND THEY CARRY THESE SPIDERS OFF.

Kays: BECAUSE THE SPIDERS ARE SO LIGHT

AND THE SILK IS SUCH A GOOD BALLOON,

IT COULD CATCH A CURRENT

AND BLOW ALL THE WAY ACROSS AN OCEAN.

Narrator: EVENTUALLY, A MULTITUDE OF SPIDERS CASCADES

DOWN ONTO THE UNSUSPECTING TOWN,

COVERING IT IN A MASSIVE, STICKY MESH.

IF I WOKE UP AND HAD LITERALLY SPIDERS RAINING DOWN ON ME,

I WOULD BECOME A HERMIT.

I WOULDN'T TRUST THE WORLD ANYMORE.

COULD THE SATELLITE IMAGE CAPTURED OVER COLORADO

HAVE BEEN ANOTHER MEGA SPIDER STORM?

Narrator: STORMCHASER GEORGE KOUROUNIS RE-EXAMINES THE SHAPE

AND LOCATION OF THE WEIRD WHITE SPLAT.

I'VE BEEN CHASING STORMS FOR OVER 20 YEARS,

AND THIS IMAGE IS SCREAMING TO ME THAT THIS IS A HAIL SWATH.

WE'RE IN AN AREA OF NORTH AMERICA

THAT SEES BIG THUNDERSTORMS AT THIS TIME OF YEAR

WHEN THIS IMAGE WAS TAKEN, AND LOOKING AT IT,

I CAN TELL THAT WHAT WE'RE SEEING IS ACTUALLY HAILSTONES.

**

Narrator: HAIL FORMS WHEN STRONG WINDS CARRY WATER DROPLETS

SO HIGH THAT THEY FREEZE.

IF THE UPDRAFT IS STRONG ENOUGH, THE HAIL GROWS AND GROWS.

THESE HAILSTONES WILL GATHER LAYERS AS THEY REMAIN SUSPENDED

IN THE UPDRAFT OF THIS STORM UNTIL, EVENTUALLY,

THE WEIGHT OF THE STONE IS MORE THAN THAT UPDRAFT CAN SUPPORT,

AND THEN DOWN IT COMES.

Narrator: HAILSTONES CAN WEIGH 2 POUNDS

AND BE ALMOST AS BIG AS A VOLLEYBALL.

AND SOMETIMES, THESE HAILSTONES ARE DRAGGED DOWN

BY VIOLENT DOWNDRAFT WINDS, AS WELL.

SO, YOU CAN HAVE HAIL

THAT IS COMING DOWN AT TREMENDOUS SPEEDS.

Narrator: ON MAY 14th,

A MASSIVE HAIL STORM HITS THE TOWN IN THE IMAGE.

Kourounis: I'VE BEEN HIT BY HAILSTONES

THAT HAVE BEEN PROPELLED AT HIGH SPEED,

AND THEY WILL PUNCH THROUGH CAR SIDE PANELS.

THEY WILL SMASH EVERYTHING IN THEIR PATH.

THE NOISE, WE DESCRIBE IT AS "GORILLA HAIL"

BECAUSE IT SOUNDS LIKE THERE'S A GORILLA ON THE ROOF OF YOUR CAR,

POUNDING ON IT WITH ALL OF ITS MIGHT.

[ THUDDING ]

Narrator: THE RESULTING 2-FEET DEEP ICE BLANKET

REMAINS VISIBLE FROM THE SKIES FOR DAYS.

IN THE IMAGE, WE'RE SEEING THAT THE HAIL SWATH

IS VERY LOCALIZED,

AND THAT'S BECAUSE THE STORM THAT PRODUCED IT

WAS A SINGLE SUPERCELL STORM THAT WAS MOVING VERY SLOWLY.

YOU CAN HAVE UTTER DEVASTATION IN SUCH A NARROW PATH,

AND YET, YOUR NEIGHBOR'S FIELD, TOTALLY FINE.

**

Narrator: COMING UP, SATELLITES FIND A NEW MENACE IN MEXICO.

THE CLUES IN THIS IMAGE ARE CONSISTENT WITH THIS

BEING A DRUG LORD'S MANSION.

Narrator: AND THE LATEST COMMUNIST ATROCITY.

SATELLITE IMAGES HAVE SHOWN THAT DOZENS

OF THESE CAMPS EXIST THROUGHOUT CHINA.

**

**

Narrator: DECEMBER 10th, 2015.

A SATELLITE PASSING OVER AN ISOLATED COASTAL AREA

OF BAJA MEXICO CAPTURES THIS IMAGE.

Nelson: THIS IS A HUGE FACILITY.

I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT THIS STRUCTURE IS FOR,

BUT IT'S CLEARLY SOMETHING BIG.

Narrator: IMAGE ANALYSIS REVEALS THE PRESENCE

OF A MASSIVE FENCE AROUND THE COMPOUND.

THERE ARE SIGNS THAT THIS COMPOUND

IS SURROUNDED BY HIGH SECURITY.

IN SUCH A REMOTE PLACE LIKE THIS,

IT DOESN'T REALLY SEEM NECESSARY,

UNLESS WHAT THEY'RE UP TO IS...

NEFARIOUS.

Narrator: INVESTIGATORS IDENTIFY SEVERAL DOME-SHAPED FEATURES

IN THE COMPOUND.

THROUGHOUT MEXICO, THIS KIND OF ARABIAN ARCHITECTURE

IS A SIGNATURE OF DRUG CARTEL WEALTH.

THE CLUES IN THIS IMAGE ARE CONSISTENT WITH THIS

BEING A VERY WELL-OFF DRUG LORD'S MANSION.

Narrator: HOWEVER, NOT EVERYONE IS CONVINCED

THAT THIS IS A DRUG KINGPIN'S LAIR.

BACK IN THE DAY, THIS WOULD MAKE SENSE FOR IT

TO BE THE MANSION OF A DRUG LORD,

BUT THESE DAYS, WITH SATELLITE IMAGERY,

YOU'RE GONNA WANT TO BLEND IN.

Narrator: ROB NELSON STUDIES THE SITE FOR MORE CLUES.

Nelson: THERE'S THE POTENTIAL THAT THIS COULD BE

A SCIENTIFIC LABORATORY.

IF YOU'RE BUILDING A FACILITY WITH THE INTENT

OF DOING SOMETHING HIGHLY DANGEROUS,

IT WOULD MAKE SENSE THAT YOU WOULD WANT

TO HAVE HIGH SECURITY,

AND YOU WOULD WANT TO HAVE NOTHING IN THE VICINITY.

Narrator: BIOLOGISTS UNCOVER EVIDENCE OF A STRANGE EXPERIMENT

WITH POSSIBLE TIES TO THE FACILITY IN THE IMAGE.

Chamberlain: WHEN YOU'RE LOOKING AT PROGRAMS IN THIS AREA,

THERE IS ONE SCIENTIFIC PROGRAM THAT COMES TO MIND,

AND THAT IS SCREWWORM FLY ERADICATION.

Narrator: THE SCREWWORM FLY'S LATIN NAME

IS COCHLIOMYIA HOMINIVORAX,

MEANING "MAN-EATER."

AND IT'S ONE OF THE MOST HORRIFYING CREATURES ON EARTH.

THINK OF THE GROSSEST,

MOST TERRIFYING PARASITE YOU CAN,

TRIPLE IT, AND THEN GIVE IT WINGS.

Narrator: FEMALE SCREWWORM FLIES SEEK OUT OPEN WOUNDS

ON ANIMALS OR HUMANS.

THEY LAY UP TO 500 EGGS INSIDE, AND WHEN THEY HATCH,

CREATURES FROM THE SEVENTH CIRCLE OF HELL EMERGE.

Chamberlain: WHAT WE'RE REALLY TALKING ABOUT HERE

IS THE SCREWWORM FLY LARVAE -- MAGGOTS --

AND THEY REALLY DO A NUMBER.

THE LARVAE HAVE REALLY STRONG JAWS

THAT CAN SLICE THROUGH FLESH.

ONCE THEY'RE BORN, THEY SCREW DOWN DEEPER IN THE FLESH.

Narrator: 3,000 PARASITIC HORRORS CAN INFECT A SINGLE WOUND.

THEY CONSUME THEIR HOST ALIVE.

THEY EAT THEIR MEAL OFF OF LIVING FLESH,

AND THEN, AS THEY GROW BIGGER AND BIGGER,

THEY'RE DAMAGING TISSUE.

ULTIMATELY, IT KILLS THE ANIMAL THAT THEY'RE ON.

AND THIS CAN INCLUDE HUMANS.

Narrator: IN THE 1970s, SCREWWORMS DECIMATE U.S.

AND CENTRAL AMERICAN CATTLE POPULATIONS,

COSTING FARMERS TENS OF MILLIONS.

AMERICA AND MEXICO FIGHT BACK

BY LAUNCHING A RADIOACTIVE WAR ON THE FLESH-EATING FLY.

INSIDE SECURE, ISOLATED LABORATORIES,

SCIENTISTS EXPOSE BILLIONS OF MALE FLIES TO GAMMA RAYS.

THE BEST WAY TO COMBAT SCREWWORM FLIES

TURNED OUT TO BE TO STERILIZE MALES,

AND THEN RELEASE THEM INTO THE POPULATION.

WHEN THEY MATE WITH THE FEMALE FLIES,

THOSE EGGS ARE STERILE, THEY WILL NEVER GROW.

SO, COULD THESE BUILDINGS BE ONE OF THESE GOVERNMENT

SCREWWORM FLY ERADICATION CENTERS?

Narrator: YET, WHEN INVESTIGATORS CONSULT LAND RECORDS,

THEY REVEAL SOMETHING UNEXPECTED.

THE REMOTE, SECURE COMPOUND IS DANISH,

AND BELONGS TO SOMETHING CALLED THE TVIND TEACHER'S GROUP.

THE TVIND TEACHER'S GROUP IS AN ORGANIZATION

THAT PARADES THEMSELF OUT AS EGALITARIAN

AND PROMOTING A BETTER WORLD.

Narrator: THE GROUP IS RUN BY AMDI PETERSEN,

AND OPERATES A NUMBER OF INTERNATIONAL CHARITIES.

BUT SEVERAL EX-EMPLOYEES CLAIM IT IS A FRONT FOR A CULT.

EVEN THOUGH THIS ORGANIZATION DOES SEEM

TO DO A LOT OF GOOD THINGS -- BUILDING SCHOOLS,

AND RECYCLING CLOTHING, AND DEVELOPING NATIONS --

THEY DISCOURAGE CONTACT WITH YOUR FAMILY,

AND THEY DEMAND UP TO 50% OF YOUR SALARY

TO BE DONATED BACK TO THEM.

Narrator: DESPITE ITS CHARITABLE STATUS,

THE GROUP OWNS SEVERAL OFFSHORE COMPANIES

AND COMMERCIAL VENTURES.

WHAT'S MORE, ANALYSTS ESTIMATE THIS BEACHSIDE REAL ESTATE

IS WORTH $26 MILLION,

AND PETERSEN'S WEALTH TO BE $130 MILLION.

Kourounis: THIS GROUP HAS RECEIVED ALL KINDS OF MONEY

FROM CHARITABLE ORGANIZATIONS

AND GOVERNMENTS AROUND THE WORLD.

Narrator: IN 2013, DANISH AUTHORITIES INDICT SEVERAL

OF THE GROUP'S LEADERS ON TAX EVASION AND EMBEZZLEMENT.

HUNTED BY INTERPOL,

AMDI PETERSEN'S WHEREABOUTS ARE UNKNOWN.

**

COMING UP, WE BREAK INTO AMERICA'S TOP SECRET

NUCLEAR FORTRESS.

GOT THE DOOR OPEN.

LET'S SEE WHAT I'VE GOT INSIDE.

AND THE FIRST IMAGES OF IRAN'S CRATER OF DOOM.

EVERYTHING AT THIS SITE FEELS LIKE OUR WORST NIGHTMARE

IS COMING TRUE.

**

Narrator: JUNE 10th, 2017.

EYES IN THE SKY NEAR AMERICA'S BORDER WITH CANADA

CAPTURE SOMETHING WEIRD.

Morgan: WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?

JUST WHEN YOU THINK YOU'VE SEEN EVERYTHING,

IN NORTH DAKOTA, THERE'S A PYRAMID.

THIS IS EXCEPTIONALLY STRANGE.

THIS IS TODAY IN NORTH DAKOTA.

WE'RE NOT IN ANCIENT EGYPT IN 3000 B.C.

Narrator: THE EERIE MONOLITH IS 136 FEET WIDE,

AND IS SURROUNDED BY A SERIES OF OTHER STRANGE SHAPES

AND STRUCTURES.

ONE CATCHES INVESTIGATORS' ATTENTION.

IN THIS IMAGE, THERE'S ONE VERY CREEPY CLUE.

THAT IS WHAT APPEARS TO BE A PAINTED IRON CROSS.

THE IRON CROSS, A GERMAN MILITARY MEDAL,

IS FIRST AWARDED IN 1813.

DURING WORLD WAR II, IT BECOMES A FEARED SYMBOL OF NAZI IDEOLOGY

AND SUPPOSED ARYAN SUPREMACY.

QUESTION NUMBER ONE -- WHY IS THERE A PYRAMID IN NORTH DAKOTA?

QUESTION NUMBER TWO -- WHY IS THERE AN IRON CROSS

THAT IS VISIBLE FROM SPACE?

Narrator: THE MYSTERY COMPOUND FASCINATES EX-CIA OPERATIVE MIKE BAKER.

HE'S MAKING THE LONG DRIVE NORTH

TO THE ROUGH RIDER STATE TO STUDY IT UP CLOSE.

IT LOOKS LIKE IT'S JUST SITTING OUT THERE

WAITING FOR THE SPACESHIP TO COME DOWN,

SO ALL THE PEOPLE CAN GATHER AROUND

AND WORSHIP COMMANDER ZURG.

Narrator: ANALYSTS IDENTIFY A POSSIBLE CLUE

TO THE COMPOUND'S PURPOSE IN A NEIGHBORING STATE.

I'VE SEEN SOMETHING VERY SIMILAR TO THIS IN SOUTH DAKOTA,

AND IT WAS A U.S. MILITARY SITE.

BUT IT WAS PURCHASED BY A PRIVATE CITIZEN,

AND CONVERTED INTO A SHELTER,

SHOULD THERE BE SOME KIND OF APOCALYPSE OR DOOMSDAY SCENARIO.

Narrator: AT THE SITE, $35,000 BUYS YOU A LUXURY ZOMBIE-PROOF BUNKER

IN THE LARGEST PREPPER COMMUNITY ON EARTH.

Morgan: THIS IS NO INSIGNIFICANT COMPOUND,

BECAUSE IT CONSISTS OF 575 HARDENED STRUCTURES,

EACH OF WHICH, IT IS ESTIMATED,

CAN WITHSTAND THE EXPLOSIVE FORCE OF 500,000 POUNDS OF TNT.

Narrator: THE SITE IN THE IMAGE ALSO APPEARS TO HOUSE

SEVERAL BLAST-PROOF STRUCTURES.

AND THERE'S ANOTHER CLUE.

THERE'S WHAT APPEARS TO BE, FROM THE IMAGES,

SOME TYPE OF PERIMETER FENCING.

AND THAT WOULD SUGGEST A CLANDESTINE, SECRETIVE PURPOSE.

Narrator: THE PYRAMID IS OVER 75 MILES FROM ANY MAJOR TOWN.

AFTER A LONG DRIVE, BAKER CATCHES SIGHT OF SOMETHING

RISING FROM THE LANDSCAPE.

Baker: LOOK AT THAT.

THERE IT IS.

**

GOOD GOD.

THAT IS INCREDIBLE.

Narrator: AS BAKER EXPLORES THE PERIMETER, ONE THING BECOMES CLEAR.

I'VE SPENT A LOT OF TIME IN MY PAST WORKING

FOR THE U.S. GOVERNMENT.

A LOT OF THAT WAS SPENT ON GOVERNMENT FACILITIES

AND MILITARY BASES.

AND THIS HAS A DISTINCT FEEL OF ONE OF THOSE.

BUT IT LOOKS ABSOLUTELY DESERTED.

I DON'T THINK ANYBODY'S BEEN HERE FOR DECADES.

Narrator: THE PEOPLE THAT ONCE GUARDED THE PYRAMID

MAY BE LONG GONE, BUT CLUES TO ITS PURPOSE REMAIN.

Baker: THOSE LOOK TO BE EXHAUST STACKS OR CHIMNEYS,

I WOULD ASSUME FOR A POWER PLANT.

AND THAT WOULD SUGGEST WHATEVER THAT IS

IS SUCKING UP AN ENORMOUS AMOUNT OF ENERGY.

**

Narrator: AS BAKER APPROACHES THE PYRAMID,

HE FINDS EVIDENCE TO SUGGEST

ITS DESIGNED TO KEEP SOMETHING OUT --

OR SOMETHING IN.

LOOK AT THE SIZE OF THESE WALLS.

THE CONCRETE HERE -- REBAR-ENFORCED.

YOU'RE TALKING 3-, 4-, POSSIBLY 5-FOOT THICK WALLS.

GOT THE DOOR OPEN.

LET'S SEE WHAT I'VE GOT INSIDE.

**

ABSOLUTELY MASSIVE.

**

WHATEVER IT WAS,

IT LOOKS LIKE IT'S JUST BEEN COMPLETELY STRIPPED OUT.

THERE'S JUST A BUNCH OF RUSTING METAL AND SOME WIRES.

**

THE STAIRS DON'T GO ANYWHERE.

BUT THE LADDER DOES.

ONWARD AND UPWARD.

**

I'M AT THE VERY TOP OF THE PYRAMID.

AND THOSE MASSIVE CIRCULAR OBJECTS

THAT YOU CAN SEE FROM THE OUTSIDE --

I'M NOW STANDING ON THE BACKSIDE OF THEM.

Narrator: THE FOUR GIANT EYES HOLD THE REMAINS

OF COMPLEX ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT.

THEY OFFER A 360-DEGREE FIELD OF VIEW

OVER THE VAST NORTH DAKOTA PLAINS.

Baker: IT LOOKS LIKE A TRACKING FACILITY.

BUT WHAT WERE THEY WATCHING FOR?

WHAT WERE THEY DOING HERE?

Narrator: COMING UP, JUDGEMENT DAY FOR MIKE BAKER.

WE'RE STANDING IN THE MIDDLE OF WORLD DESTRUCTION.

Narrator: AND NEW IMAGES FROM THE HEAVENS OF A PORTAL TO THE UNDERWORLD.

Bellinger: THE ROMANS BELIEVED THAT THE TEMPLE CONTAINED

A REAL-LIFE GATE TO HELL.

Narrator: MIKE BAKER IS IN NORTH DAKOTA,

INVESTIGATING A GIANT PYRAMID CAPTURED BY SATELLITE.

HE SUSPECTS IT WAS BUILT FOR SURVEILLANCE.

THE IMAGE LEADS HIM TO ANOTHER AREA OF THE COMPOUND.

I'VE GOT TO INVESTIGATE THIS FIELD OF OBJECTS, RIGHT HERE.

Narrator: THE STRUCTURES ARE EVENLY SPACED,

AND PERFECTLY ALIGNED.

UP CLOSE, BAKER THINKS HE RECOGNIZES THEM.

ALRIGHT, THIS IS MAKING A LOT MORE SENSE NOW.

THESE...

THESE ARE MISSILE SILOS.

THESE TOPS ARE NOT CONCRETE.

THEY'RE DESIGNED TO BLOW OFF AS THE MISSILE COMES UP.

Narrator: BAKER THINKS THEIR SIZE AND APPARENT AGE

CAN MEAN ONLY ONE THING.

WE'RE STANDING IN THE MIDDLE OF THE BEST EXAMPLE

OF POTENTIAL WORLD DESTRUCTION.

WE'RE STANDING ON TOP OF WHAT WOULD HAVE BEEN

46 NUCLEAR-ARMED MISSILES DURING THE COLD WAR.

IT'S INCREDIBLE.

Narrator: THE DISCOVERY SHEDS LIGHT ON THE PURPOSE

OF THE GIANT ELECTRONIC EYES ON THE SIDE OF THE PYRAMID.

Baker: THE PYRAMID IS CONTROLLING THESE MISSILES.

IT'S DESIGNED TO IDENTIFY INCOMING TARGETS --

INTERCONTINENTAL BALLISTIC MISSILES FROM THE SOVIET UNION.

Narrator: DURING THE COLD WAR,

THE SOVIET UNION AMASSES OVER 40,000 WARHEADS --

ENOUGH TO ANNIHILATE AMERICA HUNDREDS OF TIMES OVER.

FOR MILLIONS OF U.S. FAMILIES,

ARMAGEDDON IS A VERY REAL, DAILY THREAT.

* DUM-DUM DOO-DOO-DUM-DUM *

Baker: I REMEMBER, AS A KID,

GOING THROUGH THESE DUCK-AND-COVER EXERCISES,

WHERE WE WOULD BE TOLD, "GET UNDER YOUR SCHOOL DESK."

Man: FIRST, YOU DUCK.

THEN, YOU COVER.

AND VERY TIGHTLY, YOU COVER THE BACK OF YOUR NECK AND YOUR FACE.

* DUCK AND COVER *

I REMEMBER A BUDDY OF MINE

LOOKING AT ME AS I CROUCHED UNDER MY DESK,

AND HE SAID, "I DON'T THINK THIS IS GONNA WORK."

Narrator: IN RESPONSE TO THE GROWING RED TERROR,

THE U.S. GOVERNMENT INSTIGATES THE SAFEGUARD PROGRAM.

Morgan: THE SAFEGUARD PROGRAM WAS INITIATED

BY THE NIXON ADMINISTRATION

TO PROVIDE A MISSILE INTERCEPTOR CAPABILITY

THAT WOULD PREVENT MISSILES INBOUND IN A SOVIET STRIKE.

Narrator: DECLASSIFIED U.S. GOVERNMENT FILES

REVEAL THAT, ON APRIL 6th, 1970,

CONSTRUCTION BEGINS ON THE MASSIVE SITE IN THE IMAGE.

WORKERS INSTALL 700,000 CUBIC FEET OF CONCRETE,

27,000 TONS OF STEEL, AND 2,200 MILES OF WIRING.

AND AS THE PYRAMID RISES, ITS FOUR GIANT EYES TAKE SHAPE.

Walters: WHAT YOU SEE ON THE SIDE OF THE PYRAMID

IS A UNIQUE FORM OF MISSILE DETECTION TECHNOLOGY

CALLED "PHASED ARRAY RADAR."

THE ADVANTAGE OF THIS RADAR SYSTEM IS TWOFOLD.

FIRST OF ALL, ITS BEAM CAN BE STEERED

WITHIN MILLISECONDS TO TARGET DIFFERENT INCOMING MISSILES.

SECONDLY, THIS TYPE OF RADAR

CAN BE HARDENED AGAINST A NUCLEAR BLAST.

Narrator: IF THE PYRAMID'S 2,000-STRONG TEAM

OF OPERATORS DETECT AN INCOMING MISSILE,

THEY UNLEASH THEIR OWN NUCLEAR-TIPPED COUNTER-STRIKE.

WHEN THE MISSILE IS LAUNCHED,

THIS WHOLE PART KICKS BACK ON THESE RAILS.

THE MISSILE IS OFF, HOPEFULLY ON ITS WAY TO INTERCEPT AN ICBM.

AND NOW, NORTH DAKOTA MAKES SENSE.

IF YOU THINK ABOUT WHERE THE THREAT WAS COMING FROM,

ICBM WOULD BE LAUNCHED FROM THE SOVIET UNION,

LIKELY FLYING OVER THE NORTH POLE,

AND WE WOULD HOPEFULLY INTERCEPT THAT MISSILE

SOMEWHERE OVER CANADA...

...SORRY, CANADA,

BEFORE IT REACHED THE UNITED STATES.

Narrator: BAKER THINKS THE DIFFERENT-SIZED SILOS

ARE EVIDENCE THE PYRAMID

HELD TWO TYPES OF DEFENSIVE NUCLEAR MISSILES.

THESE, IF I DON'T MISS MY GUESS,

ARE WHAT WERE CALLED "SPRINT MISSILES."

THOSE, THEN, WOULD BE SPARTAN MISSILES.

THE SPARTAN MISSILE HAD AN INCREDIBLE RANGE

OF 450 NAUTICAL MILES,

WHICH MEANT IT COULD ACTUALLY INTERCEPT

AN INCOMING ENEMY MISSILE

WHILE IT WAS STILL ABOVE THE ATMOSPHERE.

IF THE SPARTAN MISSILES FAILED, WE HAD THE SPRINT MISSILE.

SPRINT MISSILE WAS DESIGNED TO INTERCEPT MISSILES

AT VERY CLOSE RANGE.

IT WAS BLAZING FAST, AND COULD INTERCEPT A MISSILE

WITHIN 15 SECONDS OF BEING LAUNCHED.

Narrator: $6 BILLION AND TWO DECADES OF RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

GO INTO DEVELOPING THE PYRAMID ANTI-MISSILE SYSTEM.

YET, ON OCTOBER 2nd, 1975,

JUST 24 HOURS AFTER IT BECOMES FULLY OPERATIONAL,

CONGRESS VOTES TO SHUT IT DOWN.

ONE OF THE REASONS WHY IT'S CLOSED DOWN

IS THERE WAS A GREATER FEELING OF DéTENTE

BETWEEN THE SOVIET UNION AND THE UNITED STATES.

IT'S A REALLY POTENT REMINDER OF JUST THE HUGE AMOUNT OF MONEY

THAT WAS OVERSPENT ON PROJECTS LIKE THIS.

IT'S A TESTAMENT TO THE MADNESS OF THE NUCLEAR AGE.

**

Narrator: THE COLD WAR MAY HAVE THAWED, BUT A HAUNTING LEGACY REMAINS,

WROUGHT IN CONCRETE AND STEEL,

IN THIS REMOTE CORNER OF NORTH DAKOTA.

Baker: IT'S A PERFECT EXAMPLE OF HOW CLOSE WE CAME,

DURING THE COLD WAR, TO MUTUAL DESTRUCTION,

TO THE END OF THE WORLD AS WE KNOW IT.

IT'S INCREDIBLE.

Narrator: COMING UP, DISCOVERED FROM SPACE,

CHINA'S SECRET GENOCIDE.

Munoz: WE'VE SEEN THIS PLAY OUT THROUGHOUT HISTORY,

AND IT NEVER ENDS WELL.

Narrator: AND A NEW FIND UNLEASHES AN ANCIENT CURSE.

IT'S AN INVISIBLE MAGIC, AN UNDERWORLD ENCOUNTER.

Narrator: CHINA GUARDS ITS SECRETS WELL,

AND OVER THE YEARS, HAS CONCEALED COUNTLESS ATROCITIES.

YET EVEN THE TIGHTEST SECURITY IS NO MATCH

FOR THE SPIES IN THE SKY.

EVIDENCE OF THE LATEST TERROR

COMES FROM NEW IMAGES OF THE COUNTRY'S VAST

TAKLAMAKAN DESERT.

LOCALS CALL THIS "THE SEA OF DEATH,"

YET DOWN BELOW ARE SIGNS OF LIFE.

Moran: THIS IS REALLY WEIRD.

YOU HAVE THIS LARGE SWATH OF LUSH GREENERY,

AND WITHIN THAT, AN ARRANGEMENT OF BUILDINGS.

Rice: IT LOOKS LIKE A BUNCH OF COMPUTER CHIPS

IN THE MIDDLE OF THE DESERT.

Narrator: BIOLOGISTS IDENTIFY A POSSIBLE THEORY.

WHEN YOU SEE REGULAR STRUCTURES LIKE THIS

OUT IN THE RURAL AREAS,

YOU THINK MAYBE SOMETHING TO DO WITH FARMING.

IT LOOKS LIKE SOME SORT OF ANIMAL-HOLDING FACILITY.

Narrator: THE SURROUNDING DESERT IS HOSTILE TO MOST ANIMALS,

YET A REPORT FROM CHINA'S STATE-RUN NEWS AGENCY

REVEALS SOME FARMS DO EXIST HERE.

IN THE XINJIANG REGION, WHERE THIS IMAGE IS LOCATED,

EVERY YEAR, THEY GET DECIMATED BY LOCUSTS.

IT MAY SOUND WEIRD,

BUT ONE OF THE WAYS THE FARMERS ARE FIGHTING BACK

IS USING CHICKENS AND DUCKS TO CATCH AND EAT THE LOCUSTS

IN LARGE QUANTITIES.

Narrator: THE REPORT STATES THAT, IN JULY 2017,

A PLAGUE OF LOCUSTS DECIMATES BORDERLANDS

TO THE NORTH OF THE STRUCTURES.

INVESTIGATORS DISCOVER IT'S AN OUTBREAK DECADES IN THE MAKING.

CHINA'S LOCUST PROBLEM GOES BACK OVER 50 YEARS,

AND IT'S PART OF A DARK CHAPTER IN CHINESE HISTORY

THAT THEY WOULD PROBABLY RATHER FORGET.

Narrator: IN 1958, CHAIRMAN MAO ZEDONG

LAUNCHES A CAMPAIGN TO TRANSFORM CHINA'S AGRICULTURAL ECONOMY --

THE GREAT LEAP FORWARD.

ONE OF THE COMMUNIST'S FIRST CRAZY PLANS

IS TO DECLARE WAR ON A BIRD

MAO CALLS A "CAPITALIST PUBLIC ENEMY."

CHINA WAS RAMPING UP THEIR AGRICULTURE,

AND THEY DISCOVERED THAT SPARROWS

WERE EATING THEIR GRAIN.

SO, CHAIRMAN MAO IMPLEMENTED THIS MASSIVE SCHEME

TO TRY TO GET RID OF THE SPARROWS.

Narrator: THE DICTATOR FORCES WHOLE COMMUNITIES

TO WAVE FLAGS AND BANG POTS,

SO THE BIRDS DROP OUT OF THE SKY FROM EXHAUSTION.

THE BIZARRE SO-CALLED "KILL SPARROWS CAMPAIGN"

LEAVES 1 BILLION BIRDS DEAD, AND UNLEASHES A NEW TERROR.

TURNS OUT THE SPARROWS WERE EATING THE LOCUSTS

IN ADDITION TO A LITTLE BIT OF GRAIN.

YOU REMOVE THE SPARROW PREDATORS,

LOCUSTS GO CRAZY, GRAIN ALMOST DISAPPEARS.

Narrator: HUGE, BIBLICAL SWARMS BLACKEN THE SKY,

DEVOURING EVERYTHING THEY FIND, INCLUDING CROPS FOR HUMAN FOOD.

Rice: AND THIS, THEY THINK, IS ONE OF THE DRIVING FACTORS

OF THE GREAT FAMINE IN CHINA,

WHERE MILLIONS OF PEOPLE STARVE TO DEATH.

Narrator: IN THE FOUR YEARS FOLLOWING THE KILL SPARROWS CAMPAIGN,

UP TO 45 MILLION PEOPLE PERISH

DURING THE MOST DEVASTATING FAMINE IN HISTORY.

AMONG THE DESPERATE SURVIVORS, CANNIBALISM BECOMES WIDESPREAD.

Janulis: UNSURPRISINGLY, IT'S A PERIOD

THAT'S NOT REALLY TALKED ABOUT MUCH BY THE GOVERNMENT,

BECAUSE IT'S PRETTY GRUESOME.

Narrator: TODAY, FARMERS IN THE REGION

WHERE THE IMAGE WAS TAKEN HAVE MOBILIZED AN ARMY OF ANIMALS

TO TACKLE THE VORACIOUS CRITTERS.

IT TURNS OUT THAT BOTH CHICKEN AND DUCKS LOVE LOCUSTS.

**

Kays: RECENTLY, FARMERS HAVE BEGUN TO TRAIN

THE FLOCKS OF DUCKS AND CHICKENS

TO RESPOND TO A WHISTLE. AND WHEN THEY HEAR IT,

THEY GO RUNNING INTO THE FIELD LOOKING FOR DINNER.

Narrator: THIS IS NO BIRD-BRAINED SCHEME.

EACH MEMBER OF THE QUACK COMMANDO UNIT

DEVOURS UP TO 600 PESTS EVERY DAY.

Rice: THEY ACTUALLY REDUCE THE LOCUST POPULATIONS BY UP TO 75%.

THAT'S A BIG NUMBER.

COULD WE BE LOOKING AT SOME SORT OF GIANT BREEDING CENTER

FOR THESE HERO FLOCKS OF CHINA?

Narrator: IMAGE ANALYSIS CONFIRMS THE PRESENCE OF A FENCE

SURROUNDING THE FACILITY.

BUT EX-CIA OPERATIVE LINDSAY MORAN

UNCOVERS EYEWITNESS ACCOUNTS

THAT SUGGEST IT'S NOT TO CONTAIN BIRDS.

Moran: THERE HAVE BEEN REPORTS OF PEOPLE

WALKING INTO THESE BUILDINGS NEVER TO BE SEEN AGAIN.

AND WE'RE NOT TALKING ONE OR TWO PEOPLE.

WE'RE TALKING HUNDREDS.

Narrator: MORAN THINKS THE FACILITY'S LOCATION IS SIGNIFICANT.

THE AREA THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT IN THE SATELLITE IMAGE

IS IN THE HEART OF THE UYGHUR REGION OF CHINA.

THE UYGHURS ARE NOT ETHNICALLY CHINESE,

AND THEY PRACTICE ISLAM.

Narrator: MORAN DISCOVERS THAT, IN RECENT YEARS,

BEIJING HAS UNDERTAKEN A SYSTEMATIC CAMPAIGN

TO REPRESS THE 10-MILLION-STRONG LOCAL MUSLIM POPULATION.

IT BORDERS 8 DIFFERENT COUNTRIES,

INCLUDING RUSSIA, INDIA, AND PAKISTAN.

IT'S OF STRATEGIC VALUE TO THE CHINESE,

AND IT STANDS TO REASON THAT THEY WOULD WANT

TO EXERT COMPLETE CONTROL THERE.

Narrator: REPORTS SUGGEST THE COMMUNISTS HAVE RELOCATED

OVER 10 MILLION NATIVE CHINESE TO THE AREA --

A CALCULATED MOVE TO SUPPLANT THE UYGHURS.

IN 2009, WHEN LOCALS TAKE TO THE STREETS TO PROTEST,

THE CHINESE STEP UP THEIR CAMPAIGN OF INTIMIDATION.

SO, NOW, THEY HAVE THESE CAMPS WHERE THEY ROUND UP

AND SEND ANY UYGHURS THEY BELIEVE

MIGHT POSE A THREAT TO THE GOVERNMENT.

Narrator: THE CAMPS ARE DESIGNED TO INDOCTRINATE THE UYGHURS

WITH STATE-SANCTIONED COMMUNIST IDEOLOGY.

THE UYGHURS WILL FACE HARSH CONDITIONS --

ABSOLUTELY OPPRESSIVE CONDITIONS --

A LOT LIKE STALIN'S GULAGS IN THE SOVIET UNION,

OR POL POT'S RE-EDUCATION CENTERS IN CAMBODIA.

Price: TO NOT COMPLY IS NOT AN OPTION.

ANY RESISTANCE IS MET WITH EXTREME PUNISHMENT.

THE "STUDENTS" ARE APPARENTLY SHACKLED 12 HOURS A DAY,

AND SOME ARE EVEN WATERBOARDED.

Narrator: ANALYSTS ESTIMATE THE CHINESE ARE HOLDING 1 MILLION UYGHUR

AGAINST THEIR WILL IN CAMPS SUCH AS THIS.

AND THE NUMBER IS GROWING.

SATELLITE IMAGES HAVE SHOWN

THAT DOZENS OF THESE CAMPS EXIST THROUGHOUT CHINA.

RE-EDUCATION CAMPS DEVOLVE INTO PRISONS,

AND FROM PRISONS, THEY DEVOLVE INTO SOMETHING MUCH DARKER.

WE'VE SEEN THIS PLAY OUT THROUGHOUT HISTORY,

AND IT NEVER ENDS WELL.

Narrator: COMING UP, A NEW DISCOVERY IN A CURSED CITY.

THEY OPENED UP THE TEMPLE, AND BIRDS

STARTED FALLING OUT OF THE SKY, DEAD.

Narrator: AND IRAN'S LATEST MEGA-WEAPONS REVEALED FROM SPACE.

THIS IS REALLY, REALLY FRIGHTENING.

Narrator: AUGUST 21st, 2016, SATELLITES ORBIT ABOVE TURKEY,

A COUNTRY WHERE THE EMPIRES OF THE EAST AND WEST COLLIDE.

OF THE NUMEROUS HISTORIC SETTLEMENTS HERE,

Narrator: ONE CATCHES INVESTIGATORS' ATTENTION.

Bellinger: IT'S GOT EVERYTHING WE'D EXPECT

OF A MAJOR ROMAN SETTLEMENT IN TURKEY.

WHAT'S ODD IS THIS GIGANTIC MARSHMALLOW, BILLOWING,

CLOUDY THING TO THE LEFT OF IT.

SATELLITE EVIDENCE FROM OTHER TIMES OF THE YEAR

SUGGEST THAT IT'S ALWAYS THERE. SO IT'S NOT SNOW.

Faylor: IT ALMOST LOOKS LIKE FLOOD WATERS COMING IN,

LIKE SOMETHING IS DROWNING THE CITY,

AND IT'S SLOWLY SINKING INTO IT.

Narrator: THE RUINS AND WEIRD WHITE MASS

INTRIGUE ARCHAEOLOGIST KAREN BELLINGER.

SHE LEARNS THAT THIS IS HIERAPOLIS...

...A ONCE-WEALTHY, THRIVING ROMAN CITY OF 100,000 PEOPLE.

AND IT APPEARS IT IS CURSED.

THE GREEK GEOGRAPHER STRABO DESCRIBED THIS SITE AS BEING

JUST FULL OF A DENSE, MISTY FOG WHICH BILLOWED ABOVE THE GROUND,

AND ANIMALS, AS SOON AS THEY WALKED INTO THIS SPACE,

WOULD JUST DROP DEAD.

Narrator: THE DEADLY MIST OOZES FROM A STRUCTURE CALLED

"THE PLUTONIUM."

THIS WAS ESSENTIALLY A TEMPLE DEDICATED TO THE GOD PLUTO,

THE GOD OF THE UNDERWORLD.

AND THE ROMANS BELIEVED THAT THE TEMPLE OF PLUTO

CONTAINED A REAL-LIFE GATE TO HELL.

Narrator: ACCORDING TO THE GREEK TEXT,

THE GATE TO HELL IS A PHYSICAL PORTAL TO THE UNDERWORLD.

FROM IT COMES THE TOXIC BREATH

OF THE THREE-HEADED HELLHOUND CERBERUS.

TO GAIN FAVOR WITH THE GOD PLUTO,

PILGRIMS OFFER SACRIFICIAL ANIMALS TO THE TEMPLE PRIESTS.

THEY WERE EUNUCHS, AND THE WAY THEY BECAME EUNUCHS -- BIZARRE.

SELF-CASTRATION.

Horton: THE PRIESTS WOULD TAKE THE SACRIFICIAL ANIMALS

INTO THE TEMPLE OF PLUTO,

AND LIKE MAGIC, THOSE ANIMALS WOULD DIE.

Hunt: IT'S AN INVISIBLE MAGIC.

IT'S AN UNDERWORLD ENCOUNTER.

THE EUNUCHS WERE SEEN AS SUPERHUMAN

BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T DIE.

ONLY THE ANIMALS DIED.

Narrator: AS THE ROMAN EMPIRE DIES AWAY,

THE GATE TO HELL FADES INTO LEGEND.

ALMOST 2,000 YEARS LATER,

A TEAM EXCAVATING ITS RUMORED LOCATION

DISCOVERS SOMETHING THAT SOUNDS EXTRAORDINARY.

Horton: THEY OPENED UP THE TEMPLE, THE CAVE, AGAIN,

AND MUCH TO THEIR SURPRISE, THE BIRDS FLYING OVER THE TOP

STARTED FALLING OUT OF THE SKY, DEAD.

Faylor: WE THOUGHT THIS WAS JUST ROMAN MYTH-MAKING.

WE THOUGHT THESE WERE INCREDIBLE STORIES PASSED DOWN

AND EXAGGERATED THROUGH THE YEARS.

AND IT TURNS OUT, THEY'RE TRUE.

Narrator: THIS IS THE LONG-LOST GATE TO HELL,

THE FABLED PORTAL TO PLUTO'S REALM.

INVESTIGATORS LOCATE A FRACTURE IN THE EARTH,

RUNNING FROM THE OPENING TO THE STRANGE WHITE MASS.

CHEMICAL SCIENTIST REID FAYLOR SUGGESTS A THEORY.

WE KNOW THIS IS A VOLCANIC AREA.

WE KNOW THERE'S A LOT OF HOT SPRINGS AROUND.

IT MAKES ME THINK THAT THIS WHITE MATERIAL

WE'RE SEEING IS CALCIUM CARBONATE.

Narrator: FAYLOR THINKS THE WHITE MASS

IS A GEOLOGICAL FORMATION CALLED A "TRAVERTINE."

Faylor: TRAVERTINES ARE FORMED

WHEN VOLCANIC ACTIVITY PUSHES WATER UP THROUGH THE SOIL.

THE WATER'S DENSE WITH CALCIUM CARBONATE,

AND AS IT DEPOSITS, IT DRIES, CRYSTALLIZES,

AND FORMS THESE STRANGE STRUCTURES.

Narrator: ON THE HILLSIDE NEXT TO THE RUINED CITY,

THE TRAVERTINE BUILD-UP

CREATES SPECTACULAR TERRACES OF POOLED WATER.

YET THEY CONCEAL AN INVISIBLE KILLER.

THE OTHER THING THAT GETS RELEASED IN THE FORMATION

OF TRAVERTINES IS CARBON DIOXIDE.

CARBON DIOXIDE, IN HIGH ENOUGH CONCENTRATIONS, IS DEADLY.

Narrator: INVESTIGATORS BELIEVE THE FRACTURE IN THE EARTH

FUNNELS CO2 FROM THE WHITE MASS AND OUT OF THE GATES TO HELL.

CARBON DIOXIDE IS HEAVIER THAN AIR,

SO IT'S GOING TO SETTLE ON THE GROUND,

AND IT'S GOING TO FORM A DEADLY LAYER OF POISON GAS.

Narrator: STUDIES SUGGEST THE EUNUCH PRIESTS

FIGURE OUT THAT, DURING THE DAY,

THE SUN'S HEAT DISSIPATES THE TEMPLE'S LETHAL POOL OF GAS.

BUT IN THE COOL OF THE EVENING,

THEY KNOW IT SWELLS TO ALARMING LEVELS.

SO, THE PRIESTS KNOW THAT THE SACRIFICIAL ANIMALS

WITH THEIR NOSES CLOSE TO THE GROUND,

AT CERTAIN TIMES OF DAY,

ARE GOING TO BE IMMEDIATELY OVERCOME BY THE GASES,

WHILE THEY, STANDING MUCH TALLER ABOVE IT, WILL BE UNHARMED.

Narrator: AS THE EUNUCH PRIESTS SAY,

"CUIUS TESTICULOUS HABES, HABEAS CARDIA ET CEREBELLUM" --

"WHEN YOU HAVE THEM BY THE BALLS,

THE HEART AND MIND WILL FOLLOW."

WHILST THE PILGRIMS MIGHT HAVE THOUGHT

THESE PRIESTS HAD SUPERNATURAL POWER,

THE WHOLE THING, IN REALITY, WAS A MASSIVE SWINDLE.

Narrator: COMING UP,

INVESTIGATING IRAN'S TOP-SECRET TERROR DOME.

WHAT THEY REALLY WANT IS A LONG-RANGE MISSILE CAPABLE

OF DELIVERING A NUCLEAR WARHEAD TO THEIR GREATEST ENEMIES.

Narrator: AND NEW IMAGES OF A LONG-HIDDEN TRAGEDY.

PEOPLE ARE DYING. IT'S COMPLETELY HORRIFIC.

Narrator: DEFENSE ANALYSTS ARE INCREASINGLY TURNING

TO SATELLITES TO MONITOR ROGUE STATES AND DESPOTIC LEADERS.

WITH THEIR HELP, THEY HOPE TO PREVENT

THE NEXT TERROR ATTACK ON AMERICAN SOIL.

FOR MANY IN THE INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY,

THE GREATEST THREAT COMES FROM THE ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF IRAN.

IRAN IS A REPRESSIVE REGIME THAT CONTROLS ITS POPULATION,

AND IS VERY DIFFICULT TO PENETRATE.

Moran: SO, WE REALLY HAVE TO RELY ON SATELLITE IMAGES

TO TELL WHAT'S GOING ON.

Narrator: THE HARDLINE ISLAMIC COUNTRY HAS REPEATEDLY VOWED

TO DESTROY AMERICA AND RAZE ISRAEL TO THE GROUND.

ONGOING TESTING IN IRAN SUGGESTS THAT THEY'RE WORKING TOWARDS

A TRUE INTERCONTINENTAL BALLISTICS SYSTEM.

WHAT THEY REALLY WANT IS A LONG-RANGE MISSILE CAPABLE

OF DELIVERING A NUCLEAR WARHEAD TO THEIR GREATEST ENEMIES.

Narrator: ON NOVEMBER 12th, 2011, A CATASTROPHIC EXPLOSION

DESTROYS IRAN'S MISSILE RESEARCH FACILITY IN BID KANEH,

NEAR TEHRAN.

THE BLAST CLAIMS 17 LIVES, INCLUDING THIS MAN,

GENERAL HASSAN MOGHADDAM.

FEW WESTERN GOVERNMENTS MOURN HIS DEATH.

GENERAL HASSAN MOGHADDAM WAS THE KEY ARCHITECT

OF THE IRANIAN MISSILE PROGRAM.

Walters: WHEN THE GENERAL IS KILLED, EVERYBODY THINKS THAT

IRAN'S LONG-TERM MISSILE PROGRAM IS OVER.

THE WORLD CAN BREATHE EASY.

I WILL TALK TO YOU IN ABOUT...

Narrator: YET EX-CIA OPERATIVE MIKE BAKER HAS DISCOVERED

THAT THIS MAY NOT BE THE CASE.

HE'S TRACKED DOWN A GERMAN ANALYST

WHO HAS FOUND DISTURBING EVIDENCE

THAT THE GENERAL'S WORK IS FAR FROM OVER.

**

FABIAN HINZ SPECIALIZES

IN INVESTIGATING IRAN'S WEAPONS PROGRAMS.

WELL, LIKE I MENTIONED TO YOU ON THE PHONE...

Hinz: MM-HMM.

...I'VE GOT A LOT OF QUESTIONS. THAT'S WHAT I'M HERE FOR.

YEAH. I WANT TO GET STARTED.

HINZ REVEALS THAT HE REGULARLY STUDIES IRANIAN STATE TV

FOR CLUES TO CLANDESTINE MILITARY ACTIVITY.

A DOCUMENTARY COMMEMORATING THE GENERAL'S DEATH

CATCHES HIS ATTENTION.

THE IRANIANS LOVE TO TALK ABOUT THE MISSILES,

AND THEY LOVE MOGHADDAM.

SO, I STARTED WATCHING THIS,

AND THEN, I STARTED TO FIND, LIKE, FIRST HINTS

THAT THERE WAS SOMETHING VERY SECRET HE WAS WORKING ON.

IN THIS PHOTO OF THE GENERAL, HINZ SPOTS SOMETHING DISTURBING.

IN THE BACKGROUND, YOU CAN SEE A BOX

WITH SOMETHING HANDWRITTEN ON IT.

AND IF YOU LOOK CLOSELY, YOU CAN SEE THE NAME "SHAHROUD."

SHAHROUD IS A SPARSELY POPULATED REGION 200 MILES EAST OF TEHRAN.

SATELLITE IMAGERY OF THE AREA

CONFIRMS THE PRESENCE OF A LARGE FACILITY HIDDEN IN THE DESERT.

Pavelec: IT'S COMPLETELY AWAY FROM CIVILIZATION,

IN A BOWL WITH MOUNTAINS AROUND IT,

SO FEW PRYING EYES CAN LOOK AT IT.

Narrator: HISTORIC IMAGES CONFIRM CONSTRUCTION BEGINS AT THE SITE

SHORTLY BEFORE GENERAL MOGHADDAM'S MYSTERIOUS DEATH.

WAS MOGHADDAM RESPONSIBLE FOR THE SHAHROUD SITE, AS WELL?

OFFICIALLY, THE SHAHROUD SITE HAS NEVER BEEN ACKNOWLEDGED.

HINZ SUSPECTS THIS IS A SECRET SITE

WITH LINKS TO THE MISSILE EXPERT, BUT NEEDS MORE EVIDENCE.

THIS CLUSTER OF BUILDINGS OFFERS A BIZARRE CLUE.

IRANIAN MILITARY FACILITIES USUALLY ARE,

LIKE, LIGHT BLUE AND GRAY,

BUT THESE ARE COMPLETELY BLUE, WHICH IS SOMETHING VERY ODD.

AND THEN, I FOUND THAT MOGHADDAM HIMSELF

WAS A HUGE FAN OF THE [INDISTINCT] SOCCER CLUB.

AND THE COLOR OF THAT FOOTBALL CLUB IS BLUE.

SO, THIS IS THE BLUE COLOR OF THE FOOTBALL TEAM

THAT MOGHADDAM WAS SUCH A FAN OF?

HE HAD EVERYTHING AT HIS BASE PAINTED BLUE.

Walters: SO, WHAT DOES THIS ALL ADD UP TO?

WELL, WHAT IT SAYS IS THAT THE GENERAL

HAD BEEN WORKING ON A FACILITY WE DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT --

A SECRET FACILITY THAT IS STILL IN USE TODAY.

Narrator: TO THE EAST OF THE BUILDING SITS A CRATER.

AND LIKE A BOND FILM,

IT CONCEALS SOMETHING TERRIFYING.

WHAT ARE THESE THINGS, HERE?

SO, THESE ARE CONCRETE FOUNDATIONS

FOR ROCKET MOTOR TEST STANDS.

ROCKET SCIENTISTS USE CONCRETE STANDS TO TEST-FIRE ENGINES.

THE POWER OF THE ONES HIDDEN IN THIS CRATER

IS VISIBLE FROM SPACE.

YOU CAN SEE THE PLUME, THE EXHAUST PLUME,

AND THE SCAR IT LEAVES ON THE GROUND.

AND IF YOU LOOK AT PICTURES, THEY ARE TESTING MOTORS HERE

AS LATE AS 2018.

THERE'S LOTS OF ACTIVITY HERE.

THERE ARE NO FUEL TANKS VISIBLE IN THE IMAGE,

BUT THERE IS A TUNNEL ENTRANCE.

THIS PROVIDES A CLUE TO THE TYPE OF ROCKETS BEING TESTED HERE.

BECAUSE THERE'S NO LIQUID FUEL FACILITIES --

THE TANKS, THE STORAGE TANKS, AND ALL THOSE SORTS OF THINGS --

IT SUGGESTS THAT IT'S A SOLID-FUEL

MISSILE-TESTING RANGE.

Narrator: SOLID-FUEL ROCKETS ARE MUCH LESS VOLATILE THAN LIQUID ONES,

SO THEY CAN BE HIDDEN UNDERGROUND.

AND THEY GIVE AN ENEMY STATE LIKE IRAN ANOTHER KEY ADVANTAGE.

IF YOU HAVE A SOLID-FUEL SPACE-LAUNCH VEHICLE,

YOU DON'T NEED HOURS OR EVEN DAYS OF FUELING

AND ERECTING THE MISSILE.

YOU CAN JUST PRESS A BUTTON.

FROM THE SIZE OF THE STANDS AND SCARS,

HINZ CALCULATES THE ENGINES BEING TESTED HERE

PRODUCE OVER 90 TONS OF THRUST.

THAT COULD BE ENOUGH TO POWER

AN INTERCONTINENTAL BALLISTIC MISSILE.

SO, IF IRAN DEVELOPS THIS,

THEY COULD DELIVER ANY SORT OF PACKAGE

THEY WANT, REALLY, ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD.

Narrator: FROM SPACE, A DEAD MILITARY GENIUS

BACK FROM THE GRAVE, WITH AMERICA IN HIS CROSSHAIRS.

EVERYTHING AT THIS SITE FEELS

AND LOOKS LIKE ONE OF OUR WORST NIGHTMARES COMING TRUE.

THIS IS REALLY, REALLY FRIGHTENING.

Narrator: COMING UP, A BIZARRE TALE OF TERROR ON EXCREMENT ISLAND.

Pavelec: SAYING "ONE MAN'S POO, ANOTHER MAN'S GOLD" --

IT MAKES A LITTLE MORE SENSE

WHEN YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT THIS POO.

Narrator: THERE ARE LARGE AREAS OF OUR PLANET WHICH ARE SO INACCESSIBLE

THAT WE NEED SATELLITES TO SEE WHAT'S THERE.

ON JANUARY 20th, 2015,

OVER A REMOTE SOUTH PACIFIC ISLAND,

IMAGES FROM SPACE CAPTURE SOMETHING UNUSUAL.

IT ALMOST RESEMBLES CLAW MARKS

THAT ARE DRAGGED ACROSS THE SURFACE.

THIS IMAGE IS STRANGE BECAUSE THERE ARE THESE MAN-MADE TRACKS

LEADING UP TO SOME SORT OF WHITE MOUND.

Narrator: THE WEIRD MARKS ARE AROUND 3,500 MILES

FROM THE NEAREST MAJOR LANDMASS.

THIS IS ABOUT AS REMOTE AS IT GETS.

I MEAN, THIS IS THE KIND OF PLACE

THAT ROBINSON CRUSOE WOULD GO ON HOLIDAY

TO GET AWAY FROM IT ALL.

Kays: THERE'S NO FRESH WATER, THERE'S NO TREES.

I CAN'T IMAGINE ANYONE WOULD LAND HERE.

Narrator: ANIMAL EXPERT ROLAND KAYS THINKS

HE RECOGNIZES THE ISLAND'S DISTINCTIVE COLORS.

REMOTE ISLANDS LIKE THIS ARE IDEAL NESTING GROUNDS FOR BIRDS.

SO, YOU OFTEN GET THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS OF BIRDS

USING IT YEAR AFTER YEAR,

AND THEIR POO STARTS TO ACCUMULATE.

ANYONE WHO'S HAD THE MISFORTUNE OF GETTING CRAPPED ON

BY A BIRD KNOWS THAT THE BIRD POOP

HAS SORT OF A BROWNISH PART AND A WHITE PART.

AND THAT'S WHAT WE'RE SEEING ALL OVER THIS ISLAND.

Narrator: LARGE ACCUMULATIONS OF BAT AND SEABIRD EXCREMENT

ARE KNOWN AS "GUANO."

NOT YOUR TYPICAL DESERT ISLAND VACATION LOCATION,

BUT HISTORIANS THINK IT COULD EXPLAIN HUMAN PRESENCE HERE.

Merritt: SO, WHY WOULD PEOPLE NEED BIRD POOP?

BIRD POO IS A PERFECT FERTILIZER.

Narrator: TEXTS CONFIRM THAT IN THE EARLY 19th CENTURY,

AN INCREASING DEMAND FOR FERTILIZER FUELS A RUSH

TO THE GUANO-COVERED ISLANDS OF THE PACIFIC.

GUANO MINING BECOMES A MULTI-BILLION-DOLLAR BUSINESS.

BUT FOR THE LABORERS, THE INDUSTRY EXACTS A HUGE TOLL.

YOU'RE LIVING AND WORKING IN ONE OF THE MOST HOSTILE PLACES

ON THE PLANET, AWAY FROM ANY SOCIETY,

COMPLETELY AT THE MERCY OF THE COMPANY

WHOSE ONLY INTEREST IS THE BOTTOM LINE.

Narrator: CONSCRIPTED LABORERS TOIL IN INHUMAN CONDITIONS

ON MOUNTAINS OF BIRD POOP 200 FEET DEEP.

THE CLOUDS OF FECAL DUST LEAD TO COUNTLESS DEATHS

FROM RESPIRATORY DISEASE.

GROUPS OF WORKERS THROW THEMSELVES OFF THE ISLAND CLIFFS

RATHER THAN FACE ANOTHER DAY IN THESE HELLISH MINES.

IN ADDITION TO POOR LIVING CONDITIONS,

YOUR WORK IS SOME OF THE HARDEST ON THE PLANET.

YOU'RE JUST BREATHING IN DUST ALL DAY.

PEOPLE ARE DYING. NOBODY CARES.

Narrator: IN 1862, GUANO TRADERS TAKE 1,500 PEOPLE FROM EASTER ISLAND.

90% DIE IN THE MINES.

AND WHEN THE SURVIVORS RETURN HOME,

THEY DECIMATE THE REMAINING ISLANDERS WITH SMALLPOX.

THE COMPANY CREATED A WAY OF MANAGING HUMAN LABOR

IN A WAY THAT'S VERY EFFICIENT

IF YOU CONSIDER THE HUMANS AS MACHINES,

BUT IT'S COMPLETELY HORRIFIC.

Narrator: IN AMERICA, PIONEERS FORGING A PATH TO THE WEST

CREATE ANOTHER SURGE IN DEMAND FOR GUANO.

Merritt: BIRD POOP ALSO CONTAINS SALTPETER,

WHICH IS USED FOR GUNPOWDER.

AND SO, OF COURSE, IT BECOMES A HUGE COMMODITY.

Narrator: THIS INSATIABLE HUNGER FOR GUANO RESULTS IN THE U.S.

LAYING CLAIM TO OVER 100 BIRD-COVERED ISLANDS,

INCLUDING THE ONE IN THE IMAGE.

Kays: THESE LINES THAT WE SEE ARE ACTUALLY

THE REMAINS OF AN OLD TRAIN TRACK

THAT THEY USED TO SHUTTLE THE BIRD POOP

FROM THE MIDDLE OF THE ISLAND OUT TO THE COAST,

WHERE IT WOULD GET LOADED ONTO BOATS.

Narrator: BUT THE BIRDS' DIGESTIVE SYSTEMS

CAN'T KEEP UP WITH DEMAND,

AND BY 1880, THE WORLD'S GUANO RESERVES ARE SEVERELY DEPLETED.

Woman: AND THEN, THIS WHOLE OPERATION SUDDENLY STOPPED.

THEY RAN OUT OF BIRD POO TO MINE.

Narrator: A CARETAKER REMAINS ON JARVIS ISLAND,

BUT AFTER THREE YEARS, A CRAPPY LIFE COMES TO A CRAPPY END.

THIS POOR CARETAKER, IN WHAT'S DESCRIBED AS GIN-FUELED DESPAIR,

ENDS UP KILLING HIMSELF. AND WHO COULD BLAME HIM?

ALONE ON THIS ISLAND WITH NOTHING BUT BIRD POOP.