A mysterious metal monolith has been found standing out in the remote Utah desert, and the strange installation has people talking.
Standing amidst a panorama of red rock in southeastern Utah, the monolithic metallic structure looks like something from out of a science fiction film.
Earlier this month, the Utah Department of Public Safety Aero Bureau and the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources happened upon the object during a team effort to count bighorn sheep in the area. A crew was flying overhead in a helicopter when they spotted the unusual reflective structure jutting out from the middle of the landscape.
“One of the biologists is the one who spotted it, and we just happened to fly directly over the top of it,” he said. “He was like, ‘Whoa, whoa, whoa, turn around, turn around!’ And I was like, ‘What?’ And he’s like, ‘There’s this thing back there—we’ve got to go look at it!’”
They circled back and debarked the helicopter to investigate. When they drew near, they saw the tall metal object, roughly the height of two men, but found no indication of who might have erected it.
“I’d say it’s probably between 10 and 12 feet-high,” Hutchings said. “We were kind of joking around that if one of us suddenly disappears, then the rest of us make a run for it.”
It was clear to the crew that the object hadn’t simply dropped from the sky but was firmly secured in the rocky ground. Still, they couldn’t help but question whether the object was space related.
“We were, like, thinking is this something NASA stuck up there or something. Are they bouncing satellites off it or something?” said Hutchings.
The installation’s precise location has been withheld, as officials fear that the area is so remote, visitors could become stranded and need a rescue crew. Anyone who is aware of the location of the monolith is discouraged from visiting the site.
Hutchings said the monolith was “the strangest thing that I’ve come across out there in all my years of flying.”
He added that it’s probably a work of art left behind by some sci-fi enthusiast.
“I’m assuming it’s some new wave artist or something or, you know, somebody that was a big [2001 Space Odyssey] fan,” he said.
While the internet speculates about the mysterious object, the Department of Public Safety investigates.
“Although we can’t comment on active investigations, the Bureau of Land Management would like to remind public land visitors that using, occupying, or developing the public lands or their resources without a required authorization is illegal, no matter what planet you are from.”
