When humanity is confronted with a mystery, our minds are always attempting to fill in the void left behind by lingering questions using whatever means we may have. And so it’s understandable when a near disaster created by an unknown anomaly from the “Zone of Silence” pulled a rocket from the sky and dragged it to Earth against prevailing forces and then silenced all radio communication in the area that those involved would be haunted by the unnerving mystery left behind. The Mapini Silent Zone as it would become known as is still a complete and confirmed mystery.
It all started July 11, 1970. The US Air Force was conducting a test of a recently constructed Athena missile 122. It was a clear night as witnesses remember, and from its point of origin in Green River, Utah, it appeared that everything was going to go off without a hitch. But then, disaster struck. The rocket, which was originally targeted to strike a testing area, suddenly veered off course. Thinking it may have been a miscalculation, the team followed it on radar and watched in horror as it suddenly shot straight south into Mexico – and not just approaching the border, but firing deep into the country’s desert. As they watched, the missile actually disappeared beyond the horizon before touching down and exploding in an area of desert in the now infamous “Zone of Silence.”
When they found it, ground crews were relieved no one had been hurt by the launch of this mysterious rocket. They picked up their radios and called home. Only at that moment they discovered the area which had pulled this rocket from the sky and across hundreds of miles of desert was completely overwhelming their radio communication. It was impossible to get a signal in or out.
But this is where the official story splits off from the accounts of those who have visited there. Not only were the radios affected, but while conducting a subsequent investigation of the area, it seems many of those visiting noted other things strange in the area as well. Plants and animals would be discovered with alarming regularity that had mutated heavily, shocking and horrifying the witnesses in some cases. There are even stories of ghosts suddenly being spotted by frightened witnesses as they looked deep into the desert or even having conversations with colleagues that they were assured never happened. It was as if the Zone of Silence was existing on a completely different plane of existence than the rest of reality. It was as if they had stepped into a real life Twilight Zone.
What could have dragged a rocket so far beyond its normal target? What could be interfering with radio signals so heavily as to suggest a major electromagnetic interference? And why do so many who attempt to settle around the area find it so inhospitable and strange? The truth of the matter is, the Mapini Silent Zone is still to this day one of the most disturbingly mysterious areas ever discovered. And no matter how hard they try, scientists have been unable to unravel this locations mysteries.