All  

Ancient Origins Tour IRAQ

Ancient Origins Tour IRAQ Mobile

Visual Evidences of Higher Intelligence from Antiquity

Landlocked Bermuda Triangle: The Mexican Zone of Silence

Print

Of all the sites that are unexplained, the Bermuda Triangle is usually the first one that comes to mind. Located in the Caribbean, it is renowned for the ships and radio signals that have disappeared without explanation in recent years. Yet, there is another, perhaps lesser known region in which the inexplicable occurs. This location is often referred to quite simply as Mexico's Zone of Silence.

A Land Were Radio Signals Die

Located in the Chihuahuan Desert (not titled such for an unexplained number of dogs), Mexico's Zone of Silence is precisely what it sounds like: a pocket of land in which radio signals die, preventing communication to and from the area, and directionality loses all meaning. According to reports from visitors of the area, which is also known as the Mapimí Silent Zone, if one brings a compass as a backup tool, that person is out of luck—the arrow of the compass will spin uncontrollably, confusing all sense of direction. Consider the spinning compass from Disney's Pocahontas…just without the sage old Grandmother Willow to decipher the compass' meaning.

One of the most prominent investigators of the Zone is a man called Benjamin Palacios, known for his somewhat touristy home and the tours of the Zone he provides to visitors to the region. However, it seems that the mysteries of this site were not always known.

A shadowy figure at the Mexican Zone of Silence. ( YouTube Screenshot )

Rumors abound that the Mexican government hid the unexplained occurrences, possibly evidenced by the lack of tourist sites, hotels, etc. nearby the desert. Supposedly the site was only exposed to the public as unusual when an American missile mistakenly crashed in the Zone of Silence. While retrieving the missile, United States agents were exposed to the unexplained.

Supposedly the site was only exposed to the public as unusual when an American Athena RTV test rocket mistakenly crashed in the Zone of Silence. (Public Domain)

An article regarding the statement from the US government claims that,

"On July 11, 1970, the United States Air Force launched an ATHENA V-123-D rocket from Green River Launch Complex in Utah. While its intended target was the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico, it impacted '180-200 miles south of the Mexican border,' according to a recently released memorandum sent from the desk of Henry Kissinger, then serving as National Security Advisor to President Nixon."

It appears, if this quote is accurate, that a technological error revealed the Zone of Silence as an unexplained, possibly alien, site.

As is the case with most locations described as unexplained, "research" is ongoing to determine what other factors might be playing a role in the strange activity of the site. Reports of plant and animal investigations are plentiful, as well as an examination of the geological make-up of the region.

Zona del Silencio (Zone of Silence) landscape in Mexico.

Zona del Silencio (Zone of Silence) landscape in Mexico. (CC BY SA 3.0)

Stories of Alien Sightings in the Zone of Silence

And, of course, as with all locations in which the words "unexplained" or "inexplicable" are attached to their names, rumors of alien investigations are equally extensive.

It appears that numerous people have reported UFOs in the region, strange lights, and burning bushes, not unlike those described anywhere near Roswell, New Mexico or Area 51. It is also intriguing for theorists to point out the Zone of Silence falls on the same coordinates as the Bermuda Triangle, itself only recently (likely) explained.

Representation of a UFO and aliens in a desert.

Representation of a UFO and aliens in a desert. (CC0)

More Earthly Explanations

Yet, aside from the numerous theories of UFO and alien influence in the Zone's fifty-kilometer (31-mile) radius, the unexplained occurrences might, in fact, have explanations. Scientists have discovered underground deposits of meteorite debris called magnetite. Essentially, magnetics beneath the surface of the desert are what disrupt radio waves and the metal arrow of compasses.

This theory further explains the enigmatic site when one realizes that meteorites striking the Chihuahuan Desert were not uncommon in the 1900s; three have been reported striking the desert between 1938 and 1969. Those that prefer the theory of aliens likely do not hold much stock in the meteorite claims. Perhaps these people prefer to insist on a government cover-up, or an extraterrestrial trick.

Regardless, it appears that the Zone of Silence remains among the list of the unexplained, more than likely because it is far more beneficial for tourist revenue than the title "the Zone of the not-so-unexplained Silence."

Top Image: The Mexican Zone of Silence (Zona del Silencio). Source: Visual Evidences of Higher Intelligence from Antiquity

By Riley Winters

Updated on March 16, 2021.

References

Barclay, Michael. 2015. "USAF Accidentally Launched Rocket into Mexico’s Mapimi Desert 45 Years Ago." Unredacted. Accessed October, 20, 2017.

https://nsarchive.wordpress.com/2015/07/13/usaf-accidentally-launched-rocket-into-mexicos-mapimi-desert-45-years-ago/

Hawkes, Logan. 2004. "The Mysteries of the Zone of Silence." Mexico Less Traveled. Accessed October, 21, 2017.  http://mexicolesstraveled.com/silence.html

Wilson, T.E. 2016. "Exploring Mexico's Zone of Silence, and Where Radio Signals Fail and Meteorites Crash." Atlas Obscura. Accessed October 17, 2017. https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/exploring-mexicos-zone-of-silence-where-radio-signals-fail-and-meteorites-crash

 

Comments

Pete Wagner's picture

Well, if you believe in Hollow Earth theory, you’d wonder if a huge mountain or metropolis might lie under that spot on the inside.

Nobody gets paid to tell the truth.

I have a house not far from there in Mexico. There could be government activity with a secret base ….. but mostly it's a very poor region with very few people. Occoms razor would point to there just not needing to be cellular towers there.

Double 

Imagine 2021 without a fee adblocker on your phone 

Pete Wagner's picture

Too bad ads are part everything these days.  Everybody hates them.  Money-driven world, no doubt, until we change it.

Nobody gets paid to tell the truth.

Pages

Riley Winters's picture

Riley

Riley Winters is a Pre-PhD art historical, archaeological, and philological researcher who holds a degree in Classical Studies and Art History, and a Medieval and Renaissance Studies minor from Christopher Newport University. She is also a graduate of Celtic and Viking... Read More

Next article