Although most people know this United States Air Force installation as AREA 51, it is actually Groom Lake Air Force Base. Since the 1940s, after being founded as an artillery and bombing testing center during World War II, it has been part of the popular imagination for being the place where supposed UFOs are hidden or mysterious spacecraft are tested. Nothing is further from reality.

Starting in the 1950s, AREA 51 became the ideal place to develop and test prototypes of experimental devices such as the first spy planes. Both the United States Air Force, NASA and the CIA have used its facilities to develop new prototypes. Its remote location, away from cities, in the middle of the desert, made it ideal for working without the threat of prying eyes or Soviet spies during the Cold War.

Today, Groom Lake Air Base is still used to test new prototypes. The Air Force is rumored to be testing a revolutionary new project in conjunction with the private sector. The only name that has been made public, and through unofficial channels, has been ‘Phoenix’. Little is known about the exact nature of it. But all kinds of rumors and supposedly poor quality photographs circulate on the Internet about sightings of objects flying through the restricted area at unprecedented speeds or performing impossible maneuvers. There is no certainty about the veracity of these statements. Despite requests from the press and activists, there has been no official statement on the matter.

Whatever the truth, the United States government has made sure that no one knows exactly what happens within the extensive perimeter of AREA 51. An endless barbed wire fence surrounds the entire facility. As if that were not enough, curious onlookers who have approached have claimed to have seen numerous patrols of military jeeps and even Predator combat drones. The mere fact of approaching the perimeter carries a fine of $600 and crossing it carries the risk of death.