1 00:00:01,302 --> 00:00:02,935 NARRATOR: They're watching you. 2 00:00:03,037 --> 00:00:06,839 More than 6,000 satellites circle the Earth. 3 00:00:06,941 --> 00:00:10,542 Every day, they uncover new, mysterious phenomena 4 00:00:10,644 --> 00:00:13,112 that defy explanation. 5 00:00:14,915 --> 00:00:16,415 The mystery of the king, 6 00:00:16,417 --> 00:00:19,551 the cult, and the hunt for the Lost Ark. 7 00:00:20,621 --> 00:00:23,255 HORTON: This is one of the most bizarre 8 00:00:23,357 --> 00:00:26,158 things I've ever come across. 9 00:00:26,260 --> 00:00:28,961 NARRATOR: World War Weird. 10 00:00:29,063 --> 00:00:31,463 These lines are part of the battle against 11 00:00:31,532 --> 00:00:34,500 the deadliest foe that the world has ever faced. 12 00:00:35,603 --> 00:00:37,503 NARRATOR: And revealed from the skies, 13 00:00:37,638 --> 00:00:40,706 the ghost town that helped build America. 14 00:00:40,708 --> 00:00:44,943 The entire town was left to nature to completely 15 00:00:45,046 --> 00:00:46,245 reclaim it. 16 00:00:47,048 --> 00:00:50,849 NARRATOR: Baffling phenomena, mysteries from space. 17 00:00:50,984 --> 00:00:52,718 What on Earth are they? 18 00:00:52,820 --> 00:00:56,522 [theme music playing] 19 00:01:10,404 --> 00:01:12,838 February 2022. 20 00:01:18,112 --> 00:01:20,512 Mark Horton is journeying through Ireland, 21 00:01:21,515 --> 00:01:24,950 hooked by something bizarre seen from space. 22 00:01:27,721 --> 00:01:30,622 I'm well intrigued by this image, 23 00:01:30,757 --> 00:01:35,961 and that's why we have to go and investigate. 24 00:01:38,766 --> 00:01:41,400 NARRATOR: The image, captured over County Meath, 25 00:01:43,737 --> 00:01:46,605 reveals a code etched into the landscape. 26 00:01:48,342 --> 00:01:52,010 The hills of Ireland are known for being green and lush. 27 00:01:52,012 --> 00:01:54,313 But here, we have some very unusual 28 00:01:54,415 --> 00:01:59,618 structure hiding in those beautiful rolling hills. 29 00:02:00,721 --> 00:02:03,655 You have these two circles, and they look 30 00:02:03,724 --> 00:02:06,558 like they're sort of raised out of the earth. 31 00:02:09,230 --> 00:02:11,964 NARRATOR: The weird structure appears to be ancient 32 00:02:12,032 --> 00:02:14,833 and measures around 500 feet in diameter. 33 00:02:16,403 --> 00:02:20,205 We know that circular earthen structures built by ancient 34 00:02:20,207 --> 00:02:22,307 peoples have been found elsewhere in Ireland 35 00:02:22,309 --> 00:02:23,441 and Britain, 36 00:02:23,511 --> 00:02:25,744 but what's really weird about these circles is 37 00:02:25,846 --> 00:02:28,747 that they're conjoined in a figure of eight. 38 00:02:33,354 --> 00:02:35,387 NARRATOR: Tales of mysterious rituals in 39 00:02:35,389 --> 00:02:37,823 these lands stretched back for millennia, 40 00:02:38,993 --> 00:02:40,959 a clue, Horton believes, that 41 00:02:41,061 --> 00:02:43,962 the structures once served a ceremonial purpose. 42 00:02:45,933 --> 00:02:51,403 This part of Ireland is absolutely steeped in history, 43 00:02:51,405 --> 00:02:53,205 and I'm really keen 44 00:02:53,307 --> 00:02:57,709 to find out how our site might fit in. 45 00:03:01,815 --> 00:03:05,017 NARRATOR: Horton approaches the site from the north 46 00:03:07,221 --> 00:03:10,522 through two 750-foot-long parallel banks 47 00:03:10,624 --> 00:03:11,957 visible in the image. 48 00:03:15,529 --> 00:03:18,931 These go on and on, as if it's drawing 49 00:03:18,933 --> 00:03:22,901 me up to the center of this sacred site. 50 00:03:26,707 --> 00:03:28,540 NARRATOR: Yet when the archaeologist reaches 51 00:03:28,609 --> 00:03:32,044 the figure eight feature, it's not what he expected. 52 00:03:33,414 --> 00:03:35,914 What I saw in the image was two 53 00:03:35,916 --> 00:03:38,250 neat, intersecting circles, 54 00:03:38,352 --> 00:03:40,586 but it's so much more complicated, 55 00:03:40,588 --> 00:03:44,957 with humps and bumps absolutely everywhere, 56 00:03:46,126 --> 00:03:47,960 kind of like waves in the sea. 57 00:03:51,832 --> 00:03:53,999 NARRATOR: The shapes seen from space are, 58 00:03:54,001 --> 00:03:57,736 it turns out, two mounds surrounded by several deep 59 00:03:57,838 --> 00:03:59,304 ditches and banks of earth. 60 00:04:03,110 --> 00:04:05,244 And at the center of the larger hill 61 00:04:05,312 --> 00:04:07,512 is something not visible in the image. 62 00:04:09,516 --> 00:04:11,216 HORTON: It seems to be a stone. 63 00:04:16,056 --> 00:04:18,757 It's completely smooth. 64 00:04:22,129 --> 00:04:23,161 It's almost... 65 00:04:24,732 --> 00:04:28,233 dare one say it, slightly phallic in shape. 66 00:04:30,070 --> 00:04:33,238 NARRATOR: The monolith has been worn smooth by centuries of 67 00:04:33,340 --> 00:04:34,573 human hands. 68 00:04:36,610 --> 00:04:40,712 And it reminds me a bit of storrs like this on the coast 69 00:04:40,714 --> 00:04:43,315 of Scotland, which were used for inauguration 70 00:04:43,317 --> 00:04:45,050 of their chiefs and their kings. 71 00:04:49,323 --> 00:04:51,723 NARRATOR: Historical records confirm that the structure 72 00:04:51,825 --> 00:04:54,693 was once one of the most important inauguration sites 73 00:04:54,695 --> 00:04:56,628 of prehistoric Europe. 74 00:04:57,898 --> 00:05:00,999 For millennia, it played a key role in the lives 75 00:05:01,001 --> 00:05:04,903 of legendary figures called the High Kings of Ireland. 76 00:05:06,206 --> 00:05:09,408 The High Kings of Ireland are shrouded in mythology 77 00:05:09,510 --> 00:05:10,709 and mystery, 78 00:05:10,711 --> 00:05:13,945 but the evidence suggests that this was a site of supreme 79 00:05:14,048 --> 00:05:17,249 importance for a phenomenal length of time. 80 00:05:20,721 --> 00:05:23,622 NARRATOR: Legend states that some of the earliest High Kings 81 00:05:23,624 --> 00:05:27,059 were crowned here in the 15th century BCE 82 00:05:27,127 --> 00:05:29,227 and that they gained their power by 83 00:05:29,330 --> 00:05:31,063 marrying a goddess. 84 00:05:31,131 --> 00:05:34,399 But it's not until centuries later that 85 00:05:34,401 --> 00:05:38,337 verifiable evidence of these inauguration rituals emerges. 86 00:05:40,040 --> 00:05:44,710 In the early centuries of the first millennium CE, 87 00:05:44,812 --> 00:05:48,513 we know that there were over 100 kingdoms in Ireland, 88 00:05:48,515 --> 00:05:50,849 each competing with one another for power. 89 00:05:52,953 --> 00:05:54,753 NARRATOR: Out of these warring states 90 00:05:54,855 --> 00:05:56,822 rose five principal kingdoms. 91 00:05:59,226 --> 00:06:01,727 A court would then select a chieftain from one 92 00:06:01,829 --> 00:06:04,730 of these realms to be the supreme leader of Ireland, 93 00:06:04,732 --> 00:06:06,531 the so-called High King. 94 00:06:09,803 --> 00:06:11,436 They didn't inherit the throne 95 00:06:11,505 --> 00:06:14,639 or assume it through any divine right. 96 00:06:14,741 --> 00:06:17,542 WALTERS: The evidence suggests that they were often symbolic 97 00:06:17,611 --> 00:06:20,812 figures with this almost kind of godly status. 98 00:06:23,517 --> 00:06:26,051 NARRATOR: The coronation ceremony for each new king 99 00:06:26,120 --> 00:06:28,320 takes place on the site in the image, 100 00:06:28,389 --> 00:06:30,222 called the Hill of Tara. 101 00:06:32,493 --> 00:06:36,061 Before being inaugurated, he must touch the pillar 102 00:06:36,130 --> 00:06:39,564 at its center known as the Stone of Destiny. 103 00:06:41,402 --> 00:06:44,703 Legend has it that the stone would cry out if it was 104 00:06:44,805 --> 00:06:46,905 touched by a true High King, 105 00:06:46,907 --> 00:06:49,641 and that this cry would be heard all over 106 00:06:49,743 --> 00:06:50,742 the Emerald Isles. 107 00:06:53,013 --> 00:06:54,312 HORTON: All these 108 00:06:54,415 --> 00:06:57,115 amazing earthworks on top of the hill 109 00:06:57,217 --> 00:07:03,121 must have underpinned the power and authority 110 00:07:03,223 --> 00:07:04,823 of the High Kings of Ireland. 111 00:07:08,962 --> 00:07:10,762 NARRATOR: For 2,500 years, 112 00:07:10,831 --> 00:07:13,532 the Hill of Tara is one of the most hallowed sites 113 00:07:13,633 --> 00:07:14,833 in Ireland, 114 00:07:17,037 --> 00:07:20,105 where over 140 kings are crowned. 115 00:07:22,609 --> 00:07:26,745 Yet, as Horton consults recent geological surveys of the site, 116 00:07:26,847 --> 00:07:29,214 he spots something close to the giant rings 117 00:07:29,316 --> 00:07:31,550 that doesn't fit with this sacred landscape. 118 00:07:34,054 --> 00:07:35,454 This is 119 00:07:35,522 --> 00:07:37,956 an incredible image. 120 00:07:38,058 --> 00:07:41,760 Most of the site has nice, rounded mounds, 121 00:07:41,795 --> 00:07:45,764 but this bit is quite different. 122 00:07:45,799 --> 00:07:48,333 Something really odd has been going on here. 123 00:07:50,604 --> 00:07:52,804 NARRATOR: The image reveals that, at some point in 124 00:07:52,906 --> 00:07:56,741 the past, part of the site has been repeatedly excavated. 125 00:07:59,112 --> 00:08:01,613 Somebody's come in 126 00:08:01,615 --> 00:08:05,050 and essentially desecrated this sacred place. 127 00:08:08,055 --> 00:08:10,422 I mean, it's all very peculiar. 128 00:08:13,060 --> 00:08:15,160 NARRATOR: An early 20th century photograph of 129 00:08:15,228 --> 00:08:18,230 the event offers a bizarre and disturbing clue. 130 00:08:21,201 --> 00:08:25,036 The people that were digging here was a cultish 131 00:08:25,138 --> 00:08:30,108 group who believed that underneath the Hill of Tara 132 00:08:30,243 --> 00:08:33,545 was buried the Ark of the Covenant, and it's one 133 00:08:33,614 --> 00:08:38,016 of the most extraordinary, weird stories I've ever heard. 134 00:08:43,790 --> 00:08:47,259 NARRATOR: Coming up, the hunt for the Lost Ark. 135 00:08:47,327 --> 00:08:51,997 The Egyptian princess carried it with her from Egypt, 136 00:08:51,999 --> 00:08:54,132 and it was buried on this hill. 137 00:08:55,435 --> 00:08:59,304 NARRATOR: And kill or cure -- history's mystery medicines. 138 00:09:00,741 --> 00:09:02,707 Some of the treatments ranged from 139 00:09:02,709 --> 00:09:05,610 eating spiders to drinking your own urine. 140 00:09:14,121 --> 00:09:16,655 NARRATOR: Lured by mysterious structures captured 141 00:09:16,690 --> 00:09:19,524 from space, archaeologist Mark Horton 142 00:09:19,526 --> 00:09:20,959 is at the Hill of Tara, 143 00:09:22,763 --> 00:09:25,530 the coronation sight for the High Kings of Ireland. 144 00:09:26,833 --> 00:09:31,636 This is the sacred heart of the island of Ireland. 145 00:09:33,640 --> 00:09:37,142 NARRATOR: A 120-year-old photograph reveals that part of 146 00:09:37,210 --> 00:09:40,812 the sacred site has been desecrated by a mysterious cult. 147 00:09:42,549 --> 00:09:44,816 JANULIS: The desecration was actually done 148 00:09:44,818 --> 00:09:47,252 by the British Israelites, who believed 149 00:09:47,354 --> 00:09:51,222 that this was the location of the famed Ark of the Covenant. 150 00:09:56,964 --> 00:09:59,064 NARRATOR: The British Israelites is a movement 151 00:09:59,132 --> 00:10:00,732 founded in the 1840s. 152 00:10:02,703 --> 00:10:05,437 Its members believe that they are direct descendants 153 00:10:05,538 --> 00:10:07,606 of one of the lost tribes of Israel, 154 00:10:07,708 --> 00:10:09,708 as documented in biblical texts. 155 00:10:13,046 --> 00:10:15,547 JANULIS: It's a Christian movement formed by 156 00:10:15,649 --> 00:10:18,950 British people who looked for evidence 157 00:10:19,052 --> 00:10:21,453 to prove that they were one of 158 00:10:21,554 --> 00:10:24,155 God's chosen people. 159 00:10:24,224 --> 00:10:27,058 NARRATOR: The cult's beliefs 160 00:10:27,160 --> 00:10:30,095 appeal to groups of white nationalists 161 00:10:30,097 --> 00:10:33,732 and soon grows in numbers and power. 162 00:10:33,833 --> 00:10:37,402 This idea that the Anglo-Saxons were descended from 163 00:10:37,504 --> 00:10:41,239 a favored Israelite tribe caught on 164 00:10:41,308 --> 00:10:45,644 in the United States, and the impact of this movement 165 00:10:45,712 --> 00:10:47,612 is still being felt today. 166 00:10:50,751 --> 00:10:54,119 NARRATOR: As the cult grows, it creates its own mythology 167 00:10:54,254 --> 00:10:58,423 based on pseudo history and elements of Irish folklore. 168 00:11:00,360 --> 00:11:04,229 In the 1890s, it proclaims that the Hill of Tara 169 00:11:04,231 --> 00:11:08,633 is, in fact, a spiritual capital of the British Empire, 170 00:11:08,702 --> 00:11:10,702 and within it is buried the Ark 171 00:11:10,704 --> 00:11:13,304 of the Covenant and the Ten Commandments. 172 00:11:15,008 --> 00:11:18,743 They had this strange myth that an Egyptian princess 173 00:11:18,812 --> 00:11:20,945 carried it with her from 174 00:11:21,047 --> 00:11:24,215 Egypt, and then she married 175 00:11:24,317 --> 00:11:27,452 a chieftain, and then it was buried on this hill. 176 00:11:29,956 --> 00:11:33,825 NARRATOR: In 1899, the group begins to excavate the site, 177 00:11:33,827 --> 00:11:36,761 creating scars visible in the satellite image. 178 00:11:39,933 --> 00:11:42,901 The desecration enrages many Irish and fuels 179 00:11:42,903 --> 00:11:45,737 resentment of British rule of their country. 180 00:11:47,207 --> 00:11:51,309 HORTON: The sheer arrogance of the British Israelites, 181 00:11:51,411 --> 00:11:55,714 to think that they could come over from Britain 182 00:11:55,816 --> 00:11:58,817 and desecrate one of Ireland's 183 00:11:58,919 --> 00:12:01,720 most sacred and ancient sites. 184 00:12:03,623 --> 00:12:07,325 And so what this did was helped reawaken 185 00:12:07,327 --> 00:12:09,761 Irish Celtic nationalism, 186 00:12:09,830 --> 00:12:12,630 and this led to the Irish revolution. 187 00:12:14,835 --> 00:12:17,702 NARRATOR: The cult's vandalism of the Hill of Tara 188 00:12:17,804 --> 00:12:22,507 ultimately helps Ireland gain its independence. 189 00:12:23,810 --> 00:12:26,511 But the role this extraordinary place played 190 00:12:26,613 --> 00:12:29,748 in this country's history doesn't end there. 191 00:12:29,816 --> 00:12:34,853 There is, of course, no connection whatsoever 192 00:12:34,955 --> 00:12:38,356 between the Ark of the Covenant and the Hill of Tara. 193 00:12:38,458 --> 00:12:40,959 But there is another story, which might 194 00:12:41,061 --> 00:12:43,061 well have a grain of truth in it. 195 00:12:44,231 --> 00:12:47,232 The Hill of Tara also has 196 00:12:47,300 --> 00:12:50,301 an important role to play in 197 00:12:50,403 --> 00:12:53,738 the story of the man credited with bringing Christianity to 198 00:12:53,840 --> 00:12:55,306 Ireland, St. Patrick. 199 00:12:57,310 --> 00:13:01,045 NARRATOR: The story begins in the early 5th century CE. 200 00:13:02,449 --> 00:13:06,551 St. Patrick was a Roman citizen who was captured and sold into 201 00:13:06,653 --> 00:13:09,654 slavery in Ireland, but he was able to escape 202 00:13:09,723 --> 00:13:11,856 and go to Britain. 203 00:13:11,991 --> 00:13:13,057 In Britain, 204 00:13:13,059 --> 00:13:15,927 he studied to become a priest, and when he returned 205 00:13:15,929 --> 00:13:17,629 to Ireland, it was as a missionary. 206 00:13:19,533 --> 00:13:22,333 NARRATOR: In March 433 CE, 207 00:13:22,402 --> 00:13:24,235 Patrick travels to the Hill of Tara 208 00:13:24,304 --> 00:13:27,505 hoping to convert the High King and his subjects 209 00:13:27,607 --> 00:13:29,707 to Christianity. 210 00:13:29,709 --> 00:13:31,709 In defiance of pagan tradition, 211 00:13:31,812 --> 00:13:34,946 he lights a bonfire on the nearby Hill of Slane. 212 00:13:36,716 --> 00:13:40,451 By placing his Easter fire up here, 213 00:13:40,553 --> 00:13:44,422 he was making a statement about the arrival of 214 00:13:44,557 --> 00:13:47,358 Christianity in opposition 215 00:13:47,460 --> 00:13:51,563 to the pagan fires that were burning on the Hill of Tara. 216 00:13:54,201 --> 00:13:56,501 NARRATOR: The fire enrages the High King, 217 00:13:56,503 --> 00:13:59,604 who dispatches warriors to arrest St. Patrick. 218 00:14:00,841 --> 00:14:05,410 Well, St. Patrick's powers of persuasion are so good, 219 00:14:05,412 --> 00:14:06,544 he actually converts some of 220 00:14:06,613 --> 00:14:08,513 the king's warriors to Christianity. 221 00:14:09,850 --> 00:14:14,419 HUNT: St. Patrick's conversion of many of the Irish 222 00:14:14,421 --> 00:14:18,623 from Tara is the advent of Christianity in Ireland. 223 00:14:20,861 --> 00:14:24,529 NARRATOR: Now, the site seen from space represents 224 00:14:24,631 --> 00:14:27,232 the link between pagan and Christian Ireland. 225 00:14:30,203 --> 00:14:32,337 And it's also a symbol of the country's 226 00:14:32,472 --> 00:14:38,243 journey from British rule to freedom and independence. 227 00:14:38,344 --> 00:14:42,547 What this place tells me is how the past 228 00:14:42,616 --> 00:14:47,518 shapes the present and probably also will forge the future. 229 00:14:53,126 --> 00:14:54,259 NARRATOR: Coming up, 230 00:14:54,360 --> 00:14:56,794 the bug that fought for America's freedom. 231 00:14:56,796 --> 00:15:01,699 America might owe its very independence to this disease. 232 00:15:02,736 --> 00:15:05,803 NARRATOR: And Putin's secret death squads. 233 00:15:05,805 --> 00:15:08,206 There is really no oversight of this group 234 00:15:08,208 --> 00:15:09,607 and what they get up to. 235 00:15:17,617 --> 00:15:21,619 NARRATOR: August 2018 -- aerial surveys of 236 00:15:21,721 --> 00:15:24,856 the coastline near Barnstable, Massachusetts, spot 237 00:15:24,925 --> 00:15:26,257 something unusual. 238 00:15:28,261 --> 00:15:31,829 We're clearly looking at what appears to be a wetland region, 239 00:15:31,831 --> 00:15:33,998 but alongside these meandering waterways, 240 00:15:34,000 --> 00:15:36,200 you can see these dead straight lines carved out in 241 00:15:36,303 --> 00:15:38,603 perfectly symmetrical rows. 242 00:15:38,705 --> 00:15:42,307 Some of them are vertical, some are horizontal. 243 00:15:42,309 --> 00:15:44,409 There seems to be no rhyme 244 00:15:44,544 --> 00:15:48,313 or reason to the pattern of these lines. 245 00:15:49,316 --> 00:15:51,616 NARRATOR: The strange carvings stretch out across 246 00:15:51,751 --> 00:15:55,653 50 miles of the semi-submerged landscape. 247 00:15:55,755 --> 00:15:57,255 To have this level of construction 248 00:15:57,323 --> 00:15:59,724 in a marshland region, I would assume that this must 249 00:15:59,826 --> 00:16:01,259 be some sort of government initiative. 250 00:16:02,729 --> 00:16:06,798 NARRATOR: Analysts use Maxar's SecureWatch technology 251 00:16:06,800 --> 00:16:09,300 to scan other U.S. wetlands for clues. 252 00:16:09,402 --> 00:16:14,405 This site in Louisiana has very similar-looking parallel 253 00:16:14,407 --> 00:16:17,642 lines, interconnecting with more natural waterways 254 00:16:17,744 --> 00:16:19,110 in the area. 255 00:16:19,245 --> 00:16:21,612 We know these waterways were constructed 256 00:16:21,614 --> 00:16:23,514 during World War II for the war effort. 257 00:16:26,553 --> 00:16:29,887 NARRATOR: Louisiana's bayous ran slow and silent for 258 00:16:29,889 --> 00:16:31,022 countless millennia. 259 00:16:33,927 --> 00:16:37,061 That changes in the 1940s, when they become 260 00:16:37,130 --> 00:16:40,531 a focal point of U.S. efforts to power its war machine. 261 00:16:42,035 --> 00:16:44,102 One of the things we see in the Second World War 262 00:16:44,104 --> 00:16:47,805 is this massive uptick in consumption of oil. 263 00:16:47,940 --> 00:16:49,907 This is what's driving the jeeps 264 00:16:49,909 --> 00:16:53,111 and the trucks and tanks and the planes across Europe. 265 00:16:54,214 --> 00:16:58,049 NARRATOR: During World War II, the U.S. produces around 266 00:16:58,118 --> 00:17:00,051 300,000 aircraft, 267 00:17:00,120 --> 00:17:04,522 90,000 tanks, and two million army trucks. 268 00:17:06,259 --> 00:17:07,392 To fuel them, 269 00:17:07,394 --> 00:17:10,495 the military needs 100 times more gasoline 270 00:17:10,497 --> 00:17:13,231 than it did during the First World War. 271 00:17:13,333 --> 00:17:17,335 That increased demand for gas led oil companies to seek out 272 00:17:17,437 --> 00:17:19,837 new fields, and one of the places they searched 273 00:17:19,972 --> 00:17:21,539 was Louisiana. 274 00:17:22,809 --> 00:17:24,942 NARRATOR: Over the course of the war, 275 00:17:25,044 --> 00:17:28,913 prospectors discovered 29 oil fields in the state, 276 00:17:28,915 --> 00:17:32,650 helping to increase national production by 30 percent. 277 00:17:34,421 --> 00:17:37,155 These companies dug canals through the marshlands. 278 00:17:37,223 --> 00:17:39,690 The idea was that this would allow transport ships to 279 00:17:39,692 --> 00:17:42,026 get more easily from the source of the oil 280 00:17:42,028 --> 00:17:43,628 to where it was being refined. 281 00:17:45,265 --> 00:17:47,832 NARRATOR: Historical records reveal the waterways in 282 00:17:47,901 --> 00:17:49,934 the Massachusetts image are indeed 283 00:17:50,036 --> 00:17:51,536 the legacy of warfare, 284 00:17:53,606 --> 00:17:55,773 but one waged against an enemy that 285 00:17:55,775 --> 00:17:58,342 has killed many more people than the Nazis. 286 00:18:00,413 --> 00:18:03,714 These lines are trenches dug as part of the battle against 287 00:18:03,817 --> 00:18:08,119 the deadliest foe that America and the world has ever faced, 288 00:18:08,121 --> 00:18:09,720 the mosquito. 289 00:18:10,857 --> 00:18:13,724 NARRATOR: Some scientists estimate that over history, 290 00:18:13,726 --> 00:18:17,962 malaria-carrying mosquitoes have killed 52 billion people, 291 00:18:19,933 --> 00:18:21,632 half of all human deaths. 292 00:18:24,204 --> 00:18:27,138 The disease reportedly afflicted Tutankhamun, 293 00:18:28,308 --> 00:18:29,607 Alexander the Great, 294 00:18:30,710 --> 00:18:32,410 and may have even contributed to 295 00:18:32,512 --> 00:18:34,712 the collapse of Rome and its empire. 296 00:18:36,015 --> 00:18:37,315 Back in the day, 297 00:18:37,317 --> 00:18:39,917 they didn't have a very good way of dealing with malaria. 298 00:18:39,919 --> 00:18:42,620 In fact, they didn't even know it was caused by mosquitoes. 299 00:18:42,722 --> 00:18:45,289 They thought it was caused by bad air. 300 00:18:45,291 --> 00:18:51,062 In fact, the name malaria means bad air. 301 00:18:51,131 --> 00:18:53,331 KOUROUNIS: Some of the treatments ranged from 302 00:18:53,333 --> 00:18:56,134 eating spiders to drinking your own urine 303 00:18:56,202 --> 00:18:58,169 to draining your blood. 304 00:18:58,204 --> 00:18:59,537 Needless to say, 305 00:18:59,639 --> 00:19:01,739 these treatments weren't very effective. 306 00:19:03,309 --> 00:19:05,443 NARRATOR: It's believed that malaria was brought 307 00:19:05,511 --> 00:19:07,445 to North America by colonists 308 00:19:07,547 --> 00:19:10,114 and enslaved Africans in the 17th century. 309 00:19:11,818 --> 00:19:14,652 After feasting on settlers' infected blood, 310 00:19:14,754 --> 00:19:17,655 it takes hold in local mosquito populations before 311 00:19:17,724 --> 00:19:19,257 spreading down the east coast. 312 00:19:20,627 --> 00:19:22,960 The first western settlers in America 313 00:19:23,062 --> 00:19:25,029 had a terrible time with malaria. 314 00:19:25,031 --> 00:19:26,164 One of the earliest towns in 315 00:19:26,232 --> 00:19:29,333 the Americas had repeated outbreaks of the disease. 316 00:19:31,304 --> 00:19:33,704 Over the following decades and centuries, 317 00:19:33,839 --> 00:19:36,140 malaria decimates both indigenous 318 00:19:36,242 --> 00:19:38,643 and settler populations... 319 00:19:38,711 --> 00:19:39,610 [gunshot blasts] 320 00:19:39,712 --> 00:19:41,712 ...and even plays a defining role 321 00:19:41,847 --> 00:19:43,614 in the War of Independence. 322 00:19:43,716 --> 00:19:47,418 The American victory at the Battle of Yorktown is, 323 00:19:47,420 --> 00:19:49,320 in part, attributable to the fact 324 00:19:49,455 --> 00:19:52,123 that only about half of the British troops were 325 00:19:52,258 --> 00:19:53,524 considered combat effective, 326 00:19:53,626 --> 00:19:56,460 the rest suffering from the debilitating effects 327 00:19:56,529 --> 00:19:58,229 of malaria. 328 00:19:58,231 --> 00:20:02,300 America might owe its very independence to this disease. 329 00:20:04,537 --> 00:20:07,538 NARRATOR: In 1897, a British scientist 330 00:20:07,607 --> 00:20:09,106 makes a discovery that ultimately 331 00:20:09,108 --> 00:20:11,509 leads to the strange patterns in the image. 332 00:20:13,246 --> 00:20:15,513 While dissecting a mosquito, 333 00:20:15,515 --> 00:20:18,816 Sir Ronald Ross identifies the malarial parasite, 334 00:20:19,819 --> 00:20:21,219 the first time a link is 335 00:20:21,354 --> 00:20:24,121 established between the insect and the disease. 336 00:20:25,858 --> 00:20:27,058 This allowed us to suddenly have 337 00:20:27,093 --> 00:20:29,660 an opportunity to control the disease. 338 00:20:29,762 --> 00:20:32,196 If we could figure out a way to control the insects. 339 00:20:32,198 --> 00:20:34,365 [insects buzzing] 340 00:20:34,433 --> 00:20:36,901 NARRATOR: Malaria is only carried by female mosquitoes 341 00:20:36,903 --> 00:20:38,703 who breed in stagnant water. 342 00:20:41,507 --> 00:20:43,441 In the early 20th century, 343 00:20:43,509 --> 00:20:46,744 authorities formulate an ambitious plan to eradicate 344 00:20:46,846 --> 00:20:50,414 them from vast swaths of the continental U.S. 345 00:20:50,516 --> 00:20:53,117 The government decided to invest in building giant 346 00:20:53,119 --> 00:20:55,820 mosquito trenches in America's wetlands, 347 00:20:55,822 --> 00:20:58,823 and that's what we're looking at in this image right here. 348 00:20:58,925 --> 00:21:01,058 The idea was to drain stagnant water, 349 00:21:01,127 --> 00:21:03,628 taking away any type of breeding environment for 350 00:21:03,730 --> 00:21:05,062 the mosquitoes to procreate. 351 00:21:07,200 --> 00:21:09,100 NARRATOR: To drain the stagnant water, 352 00:21:09,235 --> 00:21:13,004 562,000 acres of trenches are excavated 353 00:21:13,006 --> 00:21:15,406 in salt marshes along the Atlantic coast. 354 00:21:18,945 --> 00:21:21,746 The laborers are one of many groups the government puts to 355 00:21:21,814 --> 00:21:24,215 work on different projects to combat 356 00:21:24,350 --> 00:21:25,916 soaring unemployment across the nation. 357 00:21:28,154 --> 00:21:31,555 These projects involved a huge amount of manual labor, 358 00:21:31,657 --> 00:21:34,625 so it was actually a great way to keep people 359 00:21:34,627 --> 00:21:36,627 employed during the Great Depression. 360 00:21:38,331 --> 00:21:41,599 NARRATOR: Thanks to the trenches and the use of insecticides, 361 00:21:41,601 --> 00:21:46,037 malaria is all but eradicated in the U.S. within 16 years. 362 00:21:48,308 --> 00:21:53,611 Today, these scars, relics of the country's 350-year war 363 00:21:53,713 --> 00:21:57,114 with the disease, are still visible from space. 364 00:21:58,318 --> 00:22:01,252 It's absolutely incredible to think that something as simple 365 00:22:01,321 --> 00:22:03,721 as a trench could all but rid the country 366 00:22:03,856 --> 00:22:05,823 of one of history's most deadly diseases. 367 00:22:12,865 --> 00:22:15,499 NARRATOR: Coming up, the Saharan riddle. 368 00:22:15,601 --> 00:22:17,935 OKEREKE: It looks like the sort of thing 369 00:22:18,004 --> 00:22:21,305 you would see in Star Wars, not in the African sands. 370 00:22:21,307 --> 00:22:24,308 NARRATOR: And the town that became a tomb. 371 00:22:25,645 --> 00:22:28,212 There wouldn't even be any time to get out of your home. 372 00:22:37,523 --> 00:22:41,058 NARRATOR: January 2021. 373 00:22:41,127 --> 00:22:43,227 Satellites flying over North Africa 374 00:22:43,229 --> 00:22:45,329 study the desert sands below. 375 00:22:46,966 --> 00:22:50,034 This photo is taken way out in the middle of nowhere in 376 00:22:50,136 --> 00:22:53,104 the Libyan desert, and yet here's this enormous, 377 00:22:53,239 --> 00:22:55,506 mysterious structure. 378 00:22:55,508 --> 00:22:57,341 OKEREKE: It almost looks like the sort of thing 379 00:22:57,410 --> 00:22:58,809 you expect to see in Star Wars, 380 00:22:58,911 --> 00:23:01,045 but not in the African sands. 381 00:23:03,216 --> 00:23:06,217 NARRATOR: Scans of the wider area yield a possible clue. 382 00:23:08,254 --> 00:23:12,123 The structure sits alongside a 43-mile-long trench 383 00:23:12,125 --> 00:23:14,225 penetrating deep into the desert. 384 00:23:14,327 --> 00:23:18,829 This desert is home to the pipelines for former 385 00:23:18,931 --> 00:23:21,732 Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi's infamous 386 00:23:21,801 --> 00:23:24,301 grand Man-Made River Project. 387 00:23:24,404 --> 00:23:25,803 Perhaps this is part of that. 388 00:23:28,508 --> 00:23:31,008 NARRATOR: The murderous dictator, Muammar Gaddafi, 389 00:23:31,010 --> 00:23:33,544 rises to power in 1969, 390 00:23:35,448 --> 00:23:38,816 appointing himself as the king of kings of Africa. 391 00:23:40,820 --> 00:23:44,221 Gaddafi was seen as a madman and a tyrant, not just by 392 00:23:44,223 --> 00:23:45,456 the international community, 393 00:23:45,558 --> 00:23:48,259 but by his own people over whom he exerted 394 00:23:48,360 --> 00:23:49,527 absolute control. 395 00:23:52,165 --> 00:23:54,665 NARRATOR: To bolster his domestic power base, 396 00:23:54,733 --> 00:23:57,768 Gaddafi sets out to solve a major problem facing 397 00:23:57,770 --> 00:24:00,604 his country, a lack of water. 398 00:24:02,241 --> 00:24:03,908 So when Gaddafi came to power, 399 00:24:03,910 --> 00:24:07,011 it was his dream to exploit an aquifer that had been hiding 400 00:24:07,013 --> 00:24:09,213 beneath Libya for millions of years. 401 00:24:11,851 --> 00:24:16,454 NARRATOR: In 1983, Gaddafi launches the $25 billion 402 00:24:16,522 --> 00:24:18,856 Great Man-Made River Project to 403 00:24:18,958 --> 00:24:22,293 tap into the 36,000 cubic miles of water 404 00:24:22,295 --> 00:24:24,028 hidden under the Libyan sands. 405 00:24:25,832 --> 00:24:28,132 This project is the world's largest irrigation 406 00:24:28,234 --> 00:24:29,700 project -- essentially, 407 00:24:29,702 --> 00:24:32,436 it's a network of pipes pumping water out of the desert 408 00:24:32,538 --> 00:24:35,206 reserve and sending it over to the big cities. 409 00:24:37,109 --> 00:24:40,244 NARRATOR: Yet while pipelines do run through this region, 410 00:24:40,313 --> 00:24:43,214 military experts reveal the trench and structure in 411 00:24:43,349 --> 00:24:45,916 the image serve a very different purpose. 412 00:24:48,321 --> 00:24:51,856 JANULIS: This image seems to have a sort of tactical makeup. 413 00:24:51,958 --> 00:24:56,126 You've got areas where you could put defensive positions. 414 00:24:56,128 --> 00:24:59,497 It's hard to tell, but I'd suggest 415 00:24:59,499 --> 00:25:02,032 this is some form of military installation. 416 00:25:04,136 --> 00:25:06,537 NARRATOR: Libya has been embroiled in conflict 417 00:25:06,606 --> 00:25:10,040 since 2011, when a series of uprisings 418 00:25:10,142 --> 00:25:12,243 known as the Arab Spring 419 00:25:12,311 --> 00:25:14,311 engulfs the Middle East and North Africa. 420 00:25:16,649 --> 00:25:20,017 In Libya, Gaddafi is overthrown and beaten to death. 421 00:25:23,222 --> 00:25:26,357 His killing ends 42 years of tyranny. 422 00:25:26,458 --> 00:25:29,126 But the country's troubles are far from over. 423 00:25:31,063 --> 00:25:34,064 MUNOZ: Once Gaddafi died, you sort of ripped the lid 424 00:25:34,133 --> 00:25:37,735 off of this Pandora's box of Libyan leaders 425 00:25:37,803 --> 00:25:41,505 and exiles who are all sort of jockeying for position 426 00:25:41,607 --> 00:25:43,340 of power in the country. 427 00:25:44,944 --> 00:25:48,712 NARRATOR: In 2014, a disputed election 428 00:25:48,814 --> 00:25:50,514 results in two rival factions 429 00:25:50,616 --> 00:25:52,516 battling for control of Libya, 430 00:25:52,618 --> 00:25:56,120 with each based on either side of the trench in the image. 431 00:25:58,658 --> 00:26:00,891 As the country descends into chaos, 432 00:26:00,893 --> 00:26:03,627 it begins to attract the attention of predatory 433 00:26:03,629 --> 00:26:04,828 foreign powers. 434 00:26:07,066 --> 00:26:09,600 Libya is a really attractive country 435 00:26:09,602 --> 00:26:11,702 because of its massive oil reserves. 436 00:26:11,837 --> 00:26:13,404 It has the largest in Africa 437 00:26:13,506 --> 00:26:16,006 and the ninth largest reserves in the world. 438 00:26:19,045 --> 00:26:22,513 NARRATOR: With some 48 billion barrels of oil reserves, 439 00:26:22,515 --> 00:26:25,716 the Libyan sands have recently become a target for Russian 440 00:26:25,851 --> 00:26:27,618 President Vladimir Putin. 441 00:26:27,720 --> 00:26:31,522 Russia derives a lot of its income from oil, 442 00:26:31,524 --> 00:26:35,059 and it's in their interest to control as much 443 00:26:35,160 --> 00:26:37,227 of the oil supply in the world as possible. 444 00:26:38,230 --> 00:26:42,800 This, frankly, makes Libya a great prize for the Kremlin. 445 00:26:44,303 --> 00:26:46,337 NARRATOR: Intelligence reports suggest 446 00:26:46,405 --> 00:26:49,106 Putin is using the site in the image to support 447 00:26:49,108 --> 00:26:50,808 the Libyan National Army, 448 00:26:50,943 --> 00:26:54,244 one of two forces vying for control of the country. 449 00:26:56,415 --> 00:26:59,149 So what's important to know is that there are no Russian 450 00:26:59,218 --> 00:27:00,951 government soldiers in the area, 451 00:27:01,086 --> 00:27:04,121 but there is a private military group called 452 00:27:04,123 --> 00:27:06,190 the Wagner Group, made up of 453 00:27:06,192 --> 00:27:09,059 really highly trained Russian ex-servicemen. 454 00:27:10,296 --> 00:27:14,198 Putin has a long history of using private security firms 455 00:27:14,200 --> 00:27:16,900 like the Wagner Group to do his dirty work. 456 00:27:16,902 --> 00:27:22,039 It enables him plausible deniability among world leaders. 457 00:27:23,843 --> 00:27:26,310 NARRATOR: The Wagner Group is shrouded in secrecy, 458 00:27:26,312 --> 00:27:29,713 but it's believed to employ 6,000 highly trained 459 00:27:29,815 --> 00:27:30,948 Russian mercenaries. 460 00:27:31,050 --> 00:27:32,716 [rapid gunfire] 461 00:27:32,718 --> 00:27:35,819 It has been linked to atrocities in Syria 462 00:27:35,821 --> 00:27:38,656 and tasked with assassinating Ukrainian President 463 00:27:38,724 --> 00:27:40,557 Volodymyr Zelensky. 464 00:27:41,927 --> 00:27:43,761 They rely on intimidation and terror 465 00:27:43,829 --> 00:27:46,430 and have been known to torture and murder people. 466 00:27:46,432 --> 00:27:48,899 But as a private secretive organization, 467 00:27:48,901 --> 00:27:51,201 there is really no oversight of this group 468 00:27:51,203 --> 00:27:52,803 and what they get up to. 469 00:27:52,805 --> 00:27:57,508 NARRATOR: As well as gaining control of oil supplies, 470 00:27:57,510 --> 00:27:59,710 the fear is Libya could give Putin 471 00:27:59,812 --> 00:28:03,113 a base to launch attacks across the Mediterranean. 472 00:28:05,918 --> 00:28:09,920 Having a military presence here allows Russia easy access 473 00:28:09,922 --> 00:28:14,324 to the southern side of Europe and, for Putin, 474 00:28:14,326 --> 00:28:17,528 the potential to surround his NATO rivals. 475 00:28:17,530 --> 00:28:21,732 NARRATOR: What's more, Putin appears to have recently 476 00:28:21,834 --> 00:28:24,435 established 30 other military installations 477 00:28:24,503 --> 00:28:25,903 in Libya. 478 00:28:25,905 --> 00:28:29,239 Satellites continue to play a key role in 479 00:28:29,308 --> 00:28:32,176 monitoring his next move. 480 00:28:32,178 --> 00:28:34,611 MORAN: The scale of these fortifications 481 00:28:34,714 --> 00:28:37,548 shows just how seriously Putin takes 482 00:28:37,616 --> 00:28:40,617 keeping Russia involved in Libya. 483 00:28:46,459 --> 00:28:49,727 NARRATOR: Coming up, the white wall of terror. 484 00:28:49,862 --> 00:28:54,565 Think of it as a steam train, completely unstoppable. 485 00:28:55,801 --> 00:28:58,602 NARRATOR: And the river of gold. 486 00:28:58,704 --> 00:29:01,438 This is truly precious stuff. 487 00:29:11,817 --> 00:29:14,518 NARRATOR: July 2021. 488 00:29:14,520 --> 00:29:17,588 In the skies over Lancaster, Pennsylvania, 489 00:29:17,590 --> 00:29:21,225 aerial archaeologists using Lidar discover ghostly 490 00:29:21,326 --> 00:29:24,027 structures hidden beneath the tree line. 491 00:29:24,029 --> 00:29:28,432 If we look under this layer of vegetation, 492 00:29:28,534 --> 00:29:30,634 what we can see is roads, 493 00:29:30,703 --> 00:29:34,404 maybe remnants of buildings, like an abandoned town. 494 00:29:36,142 --> 00:29:38,408 It's just super weird to me. 495 00:29:39,445 --> 00:29:41,845 NARRATOR: The ghost town appears to house 496 00:29:41,947 --> 00:29:44,114 the remains of over 30 buildings. 497 00:29:45,818 --> 00:29:48,952 There's no immediate signs around here that tell me 498 00:29:49,021 --> 00:29:50,621 why it was abandoned, 499 00:29:50,723 --> 00:29:55,325 but it certainly was at some point, and the entire town was 500 00:29:55,327 --> 00:29:58,228 left to nature to completely reclaim it. 501 00:30:00,332 --> 00:30:03,400 NARRATOR: Analysts turn to local archives for clues. 502 00:30:04,637 --> 00:30:06,737 KOUROUNIS: Looking at the historical records, 503 00:30:06,805 --> 00:30:10,240 this town has a name -- Safe Harbor. 504 00:30:10,342 --> 00:30:12,509 KAYS: Documents showed that this town was 505 00:30:12,511 --> 00:30:15,212 part of the industry that really built Pennsylvania. 506 00:30:15,214 --> 00:30:16,814 It was part of the iron industry. 507 00:30:16,816 --> 00:30:21,318 NARRATOR: The town has its origins in the 19th century, 508 00:30:21,420 --> 00:30:24,655 when the state's newly formed Pennsylvania Railroad Company 509 00:30:24,756 --> 00:30:28,725 begins expanding at a frenzied pace. 510 00:30:28,727 --> 00:30:30,894 [train whistle blows] 511 00:30:30,896 --> 00:30:33,931 It's part of a national explosion in rail use, 512 00:30:33,933 --> 00:30:37,501 which will see more than 200,000 miles of track 513 00:30:37,503 --> 00:30:39,937 laid down in a little over five decades. 514 00:30:41,841 --> 00:30:45,542 Each mile needs 50 tons of iron, 515 00:30:45,611 --> 00:30:47,411 so the company builds an ironworks 516 00:30:47,513 --> 00:30:51,515 and town for 250 workers on the Susquehanna River. 517 00:30:53,118 --> 00:30:55,219 Obviously, you need a tremendous amount 518 00:30:55,221 --> 00:30:56,954 of iron to build a railroad. 519 00:30:57,056 --> 00:30:58,622 And the town of Safe Harbor 520 00:30:58,624 --> 00:31:01,425 and the ironworks there were perfectly positioned 521 00:31:01,527 --> 00:31:02,860 to provide that. 522 00:31:04,430 --> 00:31:06,630 NARRATOR: Iron produced at Safe Harbor helps 523 00:31:06,632 --> 00:31:10,033 the company form a 2,600-mile rail network 524 00:31:10,135 --> 00:31:11,702 in just 15 years. 525 00:31:12,938 --> 00:31:15,205 It will go on to carry 20 percent 526 00:31:15,207 --> 00:31:17,541 of all passengers in the US. 527 00:31:17,610 --> 00:31:21,411 The Pennsylvania Railroad Company grew so large 528 00:31:21,513 --> 00:31:25,148 and so fast that it became the largest railroad 529 00:31:25,217 --> 00:31:29,419 in the entire, world with over 11,000 miles worth of tracks up 530 00:31:29,421 --> 00:31:30,854 and down the eastern seaboard. 531 00:31:30,956 --> 00:31:33,624 Without company towns like Safe Harbor, 532 00:31:33,759 --> 00:31:34,958 none of it would have been possible. 533 00:31:36,128 --> 00:31:39,129 NARRATOR: As the railroad expands, so does the town, 534 00:31:39,131 --> 00:31:40,430 with new schools, 535 00:31:40,432 --> 00:31:43,100 beer halls, and homes built with the money 536 00:31:43,235 --> 00:31:45,202 made from making iron. 537 00:31:45,204 --> 00:31:48,405 But in 1861, 538 00:31:48,407 --> 00:31:49,840 its residents play a role 539 00:31:49,942 --> 00:31:53,310 in a very different chapter of U.S. history. 540 00:31:53,312 --> 00:31:56,013 When the American Civil War broke out, 541 00:31:56,015 --> 00:31:58,715 the town of Safe Harbor was perfectly positioned 542 00:31:58,717 --> 00:32:03,120 to transition from making rail lines to making gun barrels 543 00:32:03,122 --> 00:32:05,422 and weapons for the Union forces. 544 00:32:07,126 --> 00:32:09,726 NARRATOR: The ironworks produces the newly designed 545 00:32:09,795 --> 00:32:12,329 Dahlgren guns for use on the conflict's 546 00:32:12,464 --> 00:32:14,831 revolutionary ironclad warships. 547 00:32:17,102 --> 00:32:20,203 The money generated from making weapons means the town 548 00:32:20,205 --> 00:32:24,041 escapes the economic ravages of war, 549 00:32:24,109 --> 00:32:27,411 but it turns out that there are other forces 550 00:32:27,413 --> 00:32:28,712 it cannot withstand. 551 00:32:30,449 --> 00:32:34,418 DENNIE: In 1904, this area experienced a winter 552 00:32:34,553 --> 00:32:37,120 unlike any it had ever experienced before. 553 00:32:37,122 --> 00:32:38,956 Not only did the river freeze over, 554 00:32:39,024 --> 00:32:41,959 but we had up to two-feet-thick ice. 555 00:32:44,363 --> 00:32:47,864 NARRATOR: Production at the ironworks grinds to a halt, 556 00:32:47,967 --> 00:32:51,001 as Safe Harbor's inhabitants battled temperatures of 557 00:32:51,003 --> 00:32:53,403 minus 42 degrees Fahrenheit. 558 00:32:55,541 --> 00:32:59,409 The subzero conditions freeze the Susquehanna upriver 559 00:32:59,411 --> 00:33:02,512 from the town, creating a giant dam of ice. 560 00:33:05,050 --> 00:33:07,250 Any time you block a river, 561 00:33:07,319 --> 00:33:10,320 water pressure is gonna build up behind it, and the pressure 562 00:33:10,422 --> 00:33:15,425 continued to increase until eventually, the ice smashed, 563 00:33:16,962 --> 00:33:18,996 and the result is 564 00:33:18,998 --> 00:33:24,234 an avalanche of ice and water racing downstream, 565 00:33:24,303 --> 00:33:26,436 destroying anything that it hits. 566 00:33:29,108 --> 00:33:31,274 There wouldn't even be any time to react. 567 00:33:31,276 --> 00:33:33,043 The water is rising so quickly, 568 00:33:33,112 --> 00:33:35,245 you wouldn't even be able to get out of your home. 569 00:33:37,216 --> 00:33:38,949 NARRATOR: Buildings are obliterated 570 00:33:39,051 --> 00:33:40,617 by the enormous chunks of ice, 571 00:33:42,154 --> 00:33:44,921 leaving survivors of the floodwaters homeless. 572 00:33:46,558 --> 00:33:50,027 We completely underestimate the power of moving ice 573 00:33:50,029 --> 00:33:51,228 and water. 574 00:33:51,329 --> 00:33:55,432 Think of it as a steam train, completely unstoppable. 575 00:33:58,437 --> 00:34:02,305 NARRATOR: In just 15 minutes, the town is wiped from the map. 576 00:34:05,344 --> 00:34:09,813 Over the next 100 years, its ruins are swallowed by forest, 577 00:34:13,318 --> 00:34:15,519 but today, they are being revealed 578 00:34:15,654 --> 00:34:17,320 once again from the skies. 579 00:34:19,324 --> 00:34:22,759 KOUROUNIS: Even though the town of Safe Harbor no longer exists, 580 00:34:22,861 --> 00:34:26,129 it's amazing how much history went through this little 581 00:34:26,131 --> 00:34:28,932 speck that most people have never even heard of. 582 00:34:35,207 --> 00:34:39,309 NARRATOR: Coming up, the Himalayas' mystery cipher. 583 00:34:39,411 --> 00:34:42,446 It looks like Lego bricks pressed into the earth. 584 00:34:49,955 --> 00:34:51,721 NARRATOR: May 2020. 585 00:34:51,824 --> 00:34:54,024 A satellite passing over 586 00:34:54,026 --> 00:34:56,760 the Himalayas spots something strange hidden 587 00:34:56,862 --> 00:34:57,961 between its peaks. 588 00:35:00,065 --> 00:35:01,565 DENNIE: When you look at this image, 589 00:35:01,633 --> 00:35:04,301 the first thing your eye is drawn to is this river kind of 590 00:35:04,403 --> 00:35:05,836 snaking through the middle. 591 00:35:05,971 --> 00:35:07,204 But if you look again, 592 00:35:07,206 --> 00:35:09,239 you see these unusual-looking structures. 593 00:35:10,809 --> 00:35:12,509 NARDI: There seems to be hundreds, 594 00:35:12,644 --> 00:35:15,212 and they're lined up along the water's edge 595 00:35:15,314 --> 00:35:16,680 along the length of the river. 596 00:35:17,716 --> 00:35:19,216 RODRIGUEZ McROBBIE: It almost looks like a whole bunch of 597 00:35:19,218 --> 00:35:21,751 Lego bricks have been pressed into the earth. 598 00:35:24,056 --> 00:35:26,623 NARRATOR: The structures sit in a remote, steep valley, 599 00:35:26,692 --> 00:35:30,427 7,500 feet above sea level. 600 00:35:30,529 --> 00:35:32,829 It would be very treacherous to access. 601 00:35:32,931 --> 00:35:35,499 You have to wonder what's motivating people 602 00:35:35,501 --> 00:35:36,800 to go down there. 603 00:35:38,036 --> 00:35:40,504 NARRATOR: Analysts wonder if the color of the structures 604 00:35:40,506 --> 00:35:41,505 offers a clue. 605 00:35:42,608 --> 00:35:47,010 The significance of red in Tibet is sacred. 606 00:35:47,012 --> 00:35:50,747 It has to do with power and authority. 607 00:35:50,815 --> 00:35:54,651 So red is confined to religious architecture 608 00:35:54,653 --> 00:35:58,054 and symbolism. 609 00:35:58,156 --> 00:36:00,557 NARRATOR: Nearly 80 percent of the population 610 00:36:00,659 --> 00:36:02,058 follows Buddhism, 611 00:36:03,128 --> 00:36:06,530 a faith that reaches Tibet in the 7th century CE 612 00:36:07,966 --> 00:36:10,734 and governs almost every aspect of life here. 613 00:36:13,705 --> 00:36:16,806 Buddhism is the main faith in Tibet. 614 00:36:16,909 --> 00:36:21,244 So it's possible that these structures are a sacred 615 00:36:21,346 --> 00:36:27,317 site where Tibetans come to meditate and seek nirvana. 616 00:36:27,386 --> 00:36:31,254 NARRATOR: But more detailed analysis of the aerial images 617 00:36:31,356 --> 00:36:35,325 reveals the structures don't serve a spiritual purpose. 618 00:36:36,562 --> 00:36:38,328 KOUROUNIS: These aren't buildings at all. 619 00:36:38,330 --> 00:36:41,231 There are thousands of salt pans, 620 00:36:41,233 --> 00:36:43,033 evidence of an ancient method of 621 00:36:43,134 --> 00:36:46,203 salt production that's still going strong today. 622 00:36:48,507 --> 00:36:52,042 NARRATOR: There are 3,000 pans along the Lancang River, 623 00:36:52,110 --> 00:36:55,612 with each one producing 1,000 pounds of salt a year. 624 00:36:57,616 --> 00:36:58,748 To harvest it, 625 00:36:58,850 --> 00:37:01,218 locals used techniques that have been perfected for 626 00:37:01,220 --> 00:37:03,220 more than 40 generations, 627 00:37:03,222 --> 00:37:06,623 using briny water stored in wells along the river. 628 00:37:08,961 --> 00:37:11,461 AUERBACH: The brine is collected from the wells 629 00:37:11,563 --> 00:37:14,531 and then transported to these salt pans 630 00:37:14,533 --> 00:37:17,100 spread out, and then the water evaporates, 631 00:37:17,102 --> 00:37:20,503 leaving the salt behind. 632 00:37:20,639 --> 00:37:23,106 NARRATOR: Salt's ability to preserve food 633 00:37:23,208 --> 00:37:26,109 and its use in medicines and religious rituals 634 00:37:26,111 --> 00:37:29,412 made it one of the most valuable commodities of antiquity. 635 00:37:29,414 --> 00:37:33,817 That meant the structures in the image were a focal 636 00:37:33,819 --> 00:37:35,819 point for one of the superhighways 637 00:37:35,921 --> 00:37:38,922 of the ancient world, the Tea Horse Road. 638 00:37:41,059 --> 00:37:44,861 HUNT: The Tea Horse Road rivals the Silk Road 639 00:37:44,930 --> 00:37:48,832 in economic importance and geographic importance. 640 00:37:49,801 --> 00:37:52,836 Salt was part of the wealth brought 641 00:37:52,938 --> 00:37:59,109 along that, because salt was good as money. 642 00:38:01,280 --> 00:38:03,346 NARRATOR: Founded in the sixth century, 643 00:38:03,448 --> 00:38:07,117 this 1,500-mile route guides caravans of horses on 644 00:38:07,119 --> 00:38:09,953 a perilous six-month journey through the Himalayas, 645 00:38:10,022 --> 00:38:12,455 linking China to Tibet and India. 646 00:38:14,426 --> 00:38:18,295 The road is one of the riskiest trade routes in 647 00:38:18,297 --> 00:38:19,829 the world. 648 00:38:19,931 --> 00:38:23,400 Not only did you have to negotiate high, 649 00:38:23,402 --> 00:38:25,502 unscalable mountains 650 00:38:25,637 --> 00:38:28,838 and the raging rivers running through the bottoms of those 651 00:38:28,973 --> 00:38:30,206 steep valleys, 652 00:38:30,309 --> 00:38:34,744 bandits are everywhere waiting to take your goods from you. 653 00:38:38,317 --> 00:38:40,317 NARRATOR: The salt produced in Tibet 654 00:38:40,452 --> 00:38:42,519 is traded in both China and India, 655 00:38:42,587 --> 00:38:43,953 earning vast riches 656 00:38:44,055 --> 00:38:46,323 for those who complete the dangerous journey. 657 00:38:47,826 --> 00:38:52,329 Such trade routes, or salt roads, are also vital to 658 00:38:52,464 --> 00:38:54,731 the success of other great civilizations, 659 00:38:54,833 --> 00:38:57,934 including the Egyptians, Romans, and Phoenicians. 660 00:39:00,105 --> 00:39:03,006 The trade of salt has been fundamental throughout the ages. 661 00:39:03,008 --> 00:39:05,909 We've seen it traded throughout various empires 662 00:39:05,911 --> 00:39:07,243 in our history. 663 00:39:07,312 --> 00:39:10,313 Roman soldiers were paid in salt. 664 00:39:10,315 --> 00:39:12,415 This was called a salarium. 665 00:39:12,517 --> 00:39:17,721 This is also where we get our modern word, "salary." 666 00:39:17,823 --> 00:39:20,056 AUERBACH: There have been periods in history where salt 667 00:39:20,125 --> 00:39:23,626 has traded for nearly twice its weight in gold. 668 00:39:23,695 --> 00:39:27,530 This is truly precious stuff. 669 00:39:27,599 --> 00:39:30,400 NARRATOR: In more recent times, salt produced 670 00:39:30,502 --> 00:39:31,701 along the Tea Horse Road 671 00:39:31,836 --> 00:39:34,104 played a role in one of the defining moments of 672 00:39:34,239 --> 00:39:35,705 Asian history. 673 00:39:35,840 --> 00:39:39,042 So during the British occupation of India, 674 00:39:39,144 --> 00:39:43,346 there was the Salt Act of 1882, and what that meant was salt 675 00:39:43,448 --> 00:39:45,048 could not be bought from anyone 676 00:39:45,150 --> 00:39:47,217 else but the British rulers at the time. 677 00:39:48,687 --> 00:39:51,054 AUERBACH: To add insult to injury, the British levied 678 00:39:51,156 --> 00:39:53,690 an extortionate salt tax, 679 00:39:53,692 --> 00:39:56,159 which inflicted tremendous suffering on 680 00:39:56,261 --> 00:39:57,694 the poorest of Indians. 681 00:39:59,698 --> 00:40:03,400 NARRATOR: The 1882 Act also bans the production and collection of 682 00:40:03,502 --> 00:40:04,801 salt in the region, 683 00:40:04,803 --> 00:40:07,937 fueling the already growing bitterness between the Indian 684 00:40:08,006 --> 00:40:09,906 population towards British rule. 685 00:40:12,911 --> 00:40:15,311 In 1930, this simmering resentment 686 00:40:15,313 --> 00:40:16,813 reaches a boiling point. 687 00:40:18,517 --> 00:40:23,420 Mohandas Gandhi, before we know him as Mahatma Gandhi, was 688 00:40:23,422 --> 00:40:29,492 really anti-colonial, and he decides to stage a protest. 689 00:40:30,529 --> 00:40:34,531 What Mohandas Gandhi realized is that going against 690 00:40:34,633 --> 00:40:37,934 the salt tax was one of the perfect ways 691 00:40:38,036 --> 00:40:41,237 to break the bonds of British authority, to protest 692 00:40:41,339 --> 00:40:44,240 their colonial rule, without resorting to violence. 693 00:40:44,309 --> 00:40:48,812 NARRATOR: On March 12th, Gandhi gathers his followers 694 00:40:48,914 --> 00:40:52,549 and walks 241 miles toward the Indian coast. 695 00:40:53,919 --> 00:40:58,721 His plan is to openly defy the 1882 Act by making salt 696 00:40:58,857 --> 00:40:59,989 from seawater. 697 00:41:00,025 --> 00:41:04,360 Tens of thousands joined the March along the route, 698 00:41:04,462 --> 00:41:08,298 sparking peaceful protests throughout the region. 699 00:41:08,300 --> 00:41:10,500 And this started the ball rolling on 700 00:41:10,602 --> 00:41:13,903 what culminated in Indian independence from British rule. 701 00:41:16,241 --> 00:41:18,441 NARRATOR: Today, India is one of the world's 702 00:41:18,510 --> 00:41:22,011 most industrialized nations and a military superpower. 703 00:41:25,917 --> 00:41:28,551 Back along the winding Tea Horse Road, 704 00:41:28,620 --> 00:41:31,821 these 1,000-year-old pans continue to produce 705 00:41:31,823 --> 00:41:32,956 the commodity that helped 706 00:41:33,058 --> 00:41:34,824 the country gain its independence, 707 00:41:37,529 --> 00:41:40,830 a reminder of the incredible role salt has played in 708 00:41:40,932 --> 00:41:44,534 the rise and fall of nations, visible from the skies. 709 00:41:46,705 --> 00:41:49,506 HUNT: Whether as a currency or as a commodity 710 00:41:49,508 --> 00:41:51,808 or as a culinary spice, 711 00:41:51,810 --> 00:41:56,946 salt again and again touches upon all of human history.