Hangar 1: The UFO Files (2014) s02e05 Episode Script
Star People
male narrator: November, 1970.
Near Glacier National Park, Montana.
A young boy has a life-changing encounter on his way to school.
Tittl: One winter morning, as a young Blackfoot Indian named Tom is walking to school, he's stopped along the way by one of the elders of his tribe, a member the children call "Old Man Wolf.
" Equitz: Old Man Wolf calls Tom over.
He says he wants to teach him about the strange beings who visit the sacred hill.
On the trail, Old Man Wolf points to odd footprints about half the size of Tom's.
The tribal elder tells him, "Those are the star people's footprints.
" narrator: Tom and Old Man Wolf track the unusual prints up into the mountains.
Tittl: Hiking through the woods, they follow the small footprints for about two miles until they make it to this large clearing on the side of the mountain.
They're standing behind a large rock where they can see that the small footprints lead to an empty circle in the snow.
Old Man Wolf explains that the circle was caused by a star craft when it landed and took off.
He also tells the boy that these beings, the star people, have been coming here for years.
Thousands of years.
narrator: The boy scans the area, hoping to catch sight of these mysterious visitors.
Equitz: While the old man is telling Tom all about the star people, Tom looks at the footprints.
He looks at the spot on the ground.
Then suddenly he spots something out of the corner of his eye.
[engine whirring.]
He looks up and sees a large disc soaring through the sky.
And then as quickly as it appeared, the disc vanishes from view.
narrator: Was tom brought here by Old Man Wolf to introduce him to something members of their tribe have been experiencing for centuries? Native American folklore is filled with stories of otherworldly encounters with interstellar visitors, commonly referred to as "star people.
" MUFON case files, such as Tom's experience with Old Man Wolf, reveal that these stories are more than just ancient legends.
But why are Native American lands a hot spot for extraterrestrial activity? MUFON opens their files to provide the answer right now.
The Mutual UFO Network, known as MUFON, is an independent organization not bound to any government.
They investigate reports of UFO sightings from around the world.
Over the past five decades, they have collected more than 70,000 files, stored at a secure location known as Hangar 1.
Now MUFON is granting access to their vast archive.
These are the files of Hangar 1.
Nicholas: Native Americans have had a long-standing history with UFOs, even depicting them in ancient cave paintings as flying shields or star people on many of their sacred sites.
Equitz: These cave drawings are pretty amazing.
The oldest depictions of star people in the United States can be found in Sego Canyon in Utah, and they actually date as far back as 5,000 B.
C.
Tafoya: My name is Alan Tafoya, and I'm a full-blooded Jicarilla Apache.
My father, when he was alive, he took me to those caves.
And we got to see the drawings.
The way the drawings are made, it's like on the bottom you'll see, like, the earth or the people, and it's very clear that in the sky, that there's a craft in the sky.
And, you know, back then the Jicarillas didn't call them UFOs or flying saucers, you know? They--But they would talk about people in the sky or star people.
narrator: But can we really find a connection between cave paintings of star people and actual contact with extraterrestrials? January 30, 2009.
Navajo Nation, Arizona.
A family's dinner is interrupted when something out of the ordinary appears in the sky over their ranch.
Ventre: An elderly Navajo couple and their granddaughter are eating dinner one evening when they spot a strange bright light in the distance.
Nicholas: The young girl runs to the window to see what it could be.
She's alarmed when the light is not only getting closer, but also descending near their ranch house.
Ventre: The grandfather followed the young girl to the window.
But his reaction isn't fear or confusion.
Instead, he looked calm, almost happy.
Nicholas: According to the family, a disc-shaped craft hovers for a moment, and then actually lands right there on their ranch.
narrator: For the young girl, once the craft lands, the event becomes even stranger.
Ventre: The craft's lights shut off, and then a few moments later a group of four to six child-sized entities begin to leave the craft.
Nicholas: The tiny figures exit and each has some sort of flashlight-type device.
Ventre: These flashlights seem to be connected to the creatures' hands, and each one has its own unique color.
So rays of all different colors from their hands are cutting through the woods.
Nicholas: Another oddity about these lights was instead of flaring out like a normal flashlight, the light projected in a straight line, more like a thick laser pointer.
Ventre: The family watched these entities search around the outside of their house, even exploring the outhouse at one point.
Nicholas: The little girl is scared.
But her grandfather just places his hand on her shoulder, as if nothing strange is going on right outside their door.
Ventre: The elderly Navajo man goes to the door and without hesitation leaves the house, heading straight towards the strange entities.
The grandfather then seems to be communicating with the beings.
Equitz: Not only does the Navajo man seem unthreatened.
It seems almost natural to him.
Maybe it's just me, but I don't think I would feel comfortable just walking up to an alien and having a chat.
Nicholas: After a few moments, the aliens step away and begin to re-enter their craft.
And by the time the grandfather comes back to the house, the UFO is gone.
narrator: It appears that this was not the first time the grandfather met and communicated with these visitors.
Mathieson: The fact that the grandparents do not seem to be even bothered by this extraordinary event, and I see in this a greater understanding of what these beings are.
They see these things as innocent things that are not harmful things.
What that means is their involvement with these star people is intimate.
Tafoya: Star people are beings from other galaxies and dimensions that observe and guide us.
Many Native Americans believe them to be our ancestors.
There is some trust between Native Americans and star people.
narrator: Could this belief that Native Americans might possibly be descended from star people be one of the reasons why so many UFOs are seen over Native American land? And perhaps UFOs frequent these lands because of the safety they provide from hostile forces.
Coming up, what happens when the military tries to investigate UFOs on tribal lands? Ventre: The day after the last UFO sighting, a helicopter slowly comes into view.
When they finally get a good look at it, they see that it's a dark military-looking helicopter, and it's flying right over Satan's Butte, where the UFOs had been descending.
Nicholas: Now unless there is an emergency, the military does not have the right to land on Indian reservations.
narrator: UFOs seek sanctuary on reservation land, when we return.
narrator: MUFON case files reveal a long history of UFO encounters on reservation lands.
Native American folklore suggests there is an ancestral connection with interstellar beings they call star people.
But could visitors from the stars be attracted to tribal land for other reasons? June, 2010.
Navajo Nation, Arizona, near Satan's Butte.
Ventre: On an isolated ranch on the Navajo reservation in Arizona, Jeff, a white ranger who's married to a Navajo woman, says he was unloading tools from his truck when he notices his horses acting oddly.
All of them begin snorting.
[horse neighs.]
Nicholas: The area surrounding the ranch is silent.
Not knowing if there was a wild animal nearby, he grabs his gun and walks along his property.
Nothinguntil he looks up.
Ventre: Hovering over the horse corral is a silver, cigar-shaped object.
The object's about eight feet in height and as much as a hundred feet long.
Now remember, this guy isn't Native American.
So he gets scared.
And instinctively he points his gun at the object and shoots.
[gunshot.]
Nicholas: He hits something.
It sounds metallic.
And then the craft zips off quickly, but he sees it descend into a nearby canyon.
narrator: Jeff is naturally fearful and anxious to report the incident to his wife.
Ventre: He runs in and tells his wife what just happened, and she, being Navajo, explains to Jeff all about the star people.
Over the course of the next week, he and his wife see three more UFOS hovering over the same canyon.
narrator: Now that Jeff understands that Satan's Butte is a sacred site long associated with UFOs, he is less fearful when these sightings continue.
But Jeff does become concerned when one day an unmarked helicopter arrives in the area.
Ventre: The day after the last UFO sighting, they're sitting out on their patio when a helicopter slowly comes into view.
It continues to approach the ranch, and when they finally get a good look at it, they see that it's a dark military-looking helicopter, and it's flying right over Satan's Butte, where the UFOs had been descending.
narrator: What is this military helicopter doing in restricted Navajo airspace? Equitz: There are rumors inside the UFO community about an elite military helicopter unit that exists to investigate and transport UFOs.
Perhaps the military somehow learned of these UFO sightings and sent one of their helicopters to investigate.
But since the military has no jurisdiction when it comes to reservations, they wouldn't have been able to land.
They would have been confined to simply circling the area.
Nicholas: To even get onto most reservations, you have to visit their local tribal center first, even if you're just driving through.
The tribal council, not the state or federal government, generally has jurisdiction over these reservations.
narrator: The couple, concerned by what appears to be a military presence on restricted tribal land, immediately contacts local Navajo law enforcement.
Equitz: It's interesting that after the initial encounter these multiple UFO sightings don't raise any alarm.
But when a military helicopter arrives on the scene, that's when this couple reaches out to authorities.
It just goes to show that for some Native Americans, starrer land, but the U.
S.
military is not.
narrator: Could UFOs be drawn to reservation land because of the sanctuary they offer from the U.
S.
government? Speigel: It's entirely possible that some UFOs, some visitors, may prefer to visit Native American reservations because they might be aware that the military is not allowed on the reservations.
So nobody can actually bother them, and they can come and go as they wish.
Equitz: It could almost make the land serve as a sort of sanctuary.
The locals are friendly and hostile groups, like the U.
S.
government, don't have access.
narrator: While limited access to the land can severely hinder government interference, the seclusion provides ideal conditions for studying these visitors who come from the stars.
Coming up, an unparalleled investigation takes place on reservation land.
Equitz: In one case, all three lookout points spotted for about ten minutes, the light changing from yellow to green.
narrator: And later, is it possible that tribal lands contain portals to other dimensions? Nicholas: At the Four Corners, there are natural energy sources that have long been believed to be pathways for communication and transport of the star people.
narrator: The files expose shocking new connections between UFOs and Native Americans when Hangar 1 returns.
narrator: Hangar 1 has opened its files in an effort to explore the reasons why many Native American lands are UFO hot spots.
Restrictions against government meddling combined with the remoteness of reservation land may be strong factors.
The steady stream of UFOs over one reservation led to the first groundbreaking UFO study in the United States.
Washington state, summer, 1964.
Tittl: One interesting case is the Yakama reservation in Washington state, which to this day has almost nightly UFO occurrences.
narrator: Posted in fire towers, three Yakama women stand guard, watching over the reservation.
Tittl: Dorothea Strurm, Louise Kutz, and Gladys McDaniel each had over 30 years of fire lookout experience, a job that required meticulous and cautious observation over 1.
2 million miles of land.
Equitz: These women were part of a fire watch system that utilized tall lookout towers.
They kept tch r fire and other dangers, but that's not all.
narrator: On the Yakama reservation, they often see more than just fires from these towers.
Equitz: One evening, Dorothea and the other two women are stationed at different towers.
[owl hoots.]
Suddenly, Dorothea spots a reddish orb shoot through the sky and hover back and forth over the tree line.
She signals to the other lookouts, which quickly spot the same glowing object.
As the women watch the orb, two more appear.
Their movements suggest something might be in the woods and they're searching for it.
narrator: The women, accustomed to the presence of these orbs on reservation land, attempt to analyze their movements.
Tittl: This experience was nothing new to these ladies, who were regular witnesses to these UFOs.
The women were trained in mapping, so as more and more orbs appeared, the lookouts tried to triangulate the exact location of these orbs from their viewpoints.
Equitz: These orbs would continually arrive and stay for about three to six minutes before disappearing, as if their lights were just shut off.
Then as one of the lights faded away, Dorothea quietly whispered, "Come back.
" And as if hearing her from 200 feet away, the orb returned to its full brightness.
narrator: The frequency of visits and this ability to seemingly communicate with UFOs prompts the first detailed study of its kind.
Tittl: The occurrences were so frequent that Bill Vogel, the Yakama fire chief, contacted J.
Allen Hynek in 1972 to research their land.
Speigel: Probably the most beloved figure in UFO history was J.
Allen Hynek.
Dr.
Hynek was very well known for his UFO field research studies.
In addition, hwaalso the 20-year scientific consultant to Project Blue Book.
Equitz: After being asked by the Yakama fire chief to research the glowing orbs, Hynek ana fellow researcher created the first ever UFO stakeout field study.
the Yakama reservation with cameras, equipment, and magnometers.
Speigel: The Yakama UFO Field Project was also known as the Toppenish Study, and it was the first of its kind.
It was a designated area on the reservation.
The area was defined by six lookout positions, three on the ground and three higher up at lookout towers.
Equitz: While investigating the area, Hynek's team had multiple sightings.
In one case, all three lookout points spotted a pear-shaped object hovering for about ten minutes, the light changing from yellow to green.
It sat motionless until it shot straight up to a high altitude, and then with a sharp angular motion zipped east at an extremely high speed.
narrator: The extraordinary UFO sightings Hynek witnessed and documented on the Yakama Nation's reservation led him to coin a new classification for these strange craft, called "nocturnal lights" or NLs.
Nicholas: The field report states that there are three attributes of NLs.
One, they are generally bright lights.
Two, they can be different colors, although generally reddish-orange.
And three, they are not attributed to any aircraft or natural object.
In fact, these guidelines are still used by MUFON to this day.
Mathieson: The Yakama reservation UFOs are very interesting.
The fact that they've been seen for generations makes you wonder if there's something special about this location and its people.
But I doubt the UFOs are just hanging around chatting.
It makes more sense that there might be something specific about the area, like a special energy signature or something.
narrator: While the Toppenish Study confirmed consistent UFO activity over the Yakama reservation, it was unable to determine why this activity occurs.
Most agree that more research is needed to determine why UFOs are attracted to this specific area.
Coming up, as additional Hangar 1 files are examined, a new theory emerges involving UFOs and strange geographic anomalies found on tribal land.
Nicholas: Many Native Americans believe that these ley lines are used by star people as a mode of communication, and the area might even be a portal that can transport them home.
narrator: Hidden on tribal lands, Hangar 1 files uncover gateways to other worlds.
And later, firsthand testimony of an awe-inspiring UFO encounterwhen we return.
narrator: The stories of star people have been passed down through Native American tribes for generations.
Statistics show that tribal lands are in fact hot spots for UFOs.
What is attracting these extraterrestrial visitors? Perhaps Native Americans and UFOs have been drawn to these lands for the same reasons, because of the unique energy signature the land emits.
And is it this energy that has made these areas sacred? A look at the region known as "The Four Corners" holds some remarkable clues to this theory.
May 18, 2013.
Four Corners, New Mexico.
Ray: Bill is enjoying a nice desert evening in his outdoor hot tub.
He lives about 15 miles southeast of the Four Corners.
And as he's sitting there, he notices something strange.
A bright object is moving in the sk Tittl: Soon he sees that there are actually two moving lights in the sky, coming from opposite directions.
And he describes them as orbs with no clear edges, bluish in color, almost neon.
He can't keep his eyes off of these objects.
Ray: As they approach each other, another light appears from the east.
And they all eventually stop right over the Four Corners monument, hovering 200 feet apart from one another.
narrator: Bill is just one of many whose curiosity is piqued by the unusual sighting.
Tittl: Bill keeps his eyes on the three orbs floating high in the sky.
Then he notices another group of three orbs traveling the same path.
And all of a sudden, he watches these orbs until all six orbs come together and form a circle.
Ray: Then another object, smaller but with even brighter intensity, comes into view and sits a few feet away as though it's observing the other six.
Tittl: Bill is awestruck and steps out of his hot tub to try to hear the objects.
There is no sound.
Silence.
And then the lights do something even stranger, something that convinces him that he isn't seeing helicopters or military jets.
The six orbs converge into one bright larger orb with the smaller monitor just off to the right.
Ray: And a moment later, all the orbs just disappear, as though the lights were shut But Bill is left speechless and perplexed by this sighting.
narrator: What Bill claims to have witnessed is just one example of UFO encounters in the Four Corners area.
What is it about the Four Corners that makes it such a hot spot for UFOs? Tafoya: The Four Corners area is located on sacred Indian lands, and for hundreds of years there has been a long tribal history of strange sightings occurring around this area.
Equitz: What is it about this land that makes it sacred? Perhaps it's the same quality that is attracting UFOs.
Some speculate the frequent sightings have to do with the fact that the Four Corners sit directly over converging geological ley lines.
Dennin: So ley lines are interesting things.
They kind of have a long history.
At first, they were always associated with special directions in places along the Earth where you would have magic and magical powers.
Now they're more often connected with places where the magnetic field has special properties.
rn is one of many sacred sites around the world that appear to have unique energy signatures.
Nicholas: There are many sacred sites that are both spiritually important as well as home to a multitude of UFO experiences.
Harzan: Other places in the world that possess similar characteristics to the Four Corners, like the great pyramids in Egypt and Stonehenge in England, all have experienced multiple UFO sightings.
narrator: Why would UFOs be drawn to land with unusual magnetic properties? Ray: There's been a lot of speculation that UFOs need to tap into multiple sources of energy found on Earth to fuel their crafts, from manmade energy to natural electromagnetic fields.
Nicholas: Based on these geological characteristics and the number of UFO sightings in the area, we can only assume that these UFOs may be using this area as some sort of energy stop, like a gas station.
narrator: Are UFOs using the Four Corners and other sacred sites as refueling stations? Or could this location serve an even more mysterious purpose? Equitz: Some scientists believe that when ley lines cross, they can generate an intense magnetic power center, which produces its own energy field, known as a vortex.
Dennin: So a vortex in its most general term is any spinning structure.
The most common vortex people are familiar with is the tornado.
One of the interesting things about magnetic fields is they do form these circular structures that are essentially vortices.
Modlin: In fact, the Four Corners monument is actually the symbol that represents a vortex.
Vortexes seem to be an attraction point for UFOs.
narrator: Assuming these vortexes exist, why would UFOs be drawn to them? Nicholas: At the Four Corners, there are natural energy sources that have long been believed to be pathways for communication and transport of the star people.
Modlin: So the vortexes may indicate a specific point where they can move from one dimension to another dimension.
They move between one universe and the next universe.
The vortexes allow a hole in space to do something like this.
narrator: Is what Bill witnessed when the lights blinked out a UFO entering a vortex and disappearing into another dimension? Could UFOs be using these vortexes to traverse between points in space and time? Perhaps this is one explanation as to why so many UFO sightings are on tribal lands.
Coming up, Alan Tafoya reveals his own life-changing UFO experience.
Tafoya: I mean, I was like, "Wow.
" And when we looked through the binoculars, I can say that I saw humanoid silhouettes.
narrator: An astounding up-close encounter when Hangar 1 returns.
Dulce, New Mexico.
August 1980.
On his reservation, Apache Alan Tafoya witnesses a UFO for the first time.
Tafoya: I was, like, 16 years old.
And I had gone back home to my reservation for the summer to get some work.
I was with one of my cousins.
We were at some friend's house on the northern part of town, Dulce, and we were coming home.
And we had a great evening, so we're excited about that.
Of course obviously not thinking about UFOs or anything of that nature.
We're just going home.
narrator: Tafoya becomes transfixed by a strange light in the sky.
Tafoya: I was watching this orange light just kind of bouncing in the sky.
And I was like, "Wow.
" And I was like, "Hey, man, check out that light.
" And he's like, "I'm watching it.
" And then he was like, "I see it, but he seemed to be looking in the opposite direction.
I was looking east, and he was looking west.
And I was like, "No, that orange ball dancing in the sky.
" And he's like, "No.
" He goes, "Look toward Grandma Henrietta's place.
" narrator: Tafoya turns and is confronted by an incredible sight.
saw this big UFO, cigar-shaped.
It was huge.
It had to be, like, a football field huge.
And we both saw it, and I was like, "Oh, my God.
" You know, and we just kind of like--it just shook us.
I mean, we stopped and we just-- we just couldn't believe what we were seeing.
And I was like, "Oh, man.
" I said, "We gotta go tell my dad.
" narrator: Tafoya and his cousin run to tell his father, who happens to be the reservation's chief of police.
Tafoya: We started running toward the house and I said, "I wanna go tell him because, you know, he's gotta see this.
" You know, so people can believe what we saw.
And I'm over there banging on my father's door.
And I'm, like, screaming at him, "Dad, dad you gotta see this! A UFO!" And he opens the door and he looks at us and all my cousin and I could do was just kind of point toward the west of town.
narrator: Tafoya's father sees the UFO and is equally astounded.
Tafoya: My dad looks out the door and he, like, was like, "Oh, my God.
" And he's like--he's the chiefo handheld radio and he calls to the Dolce dispatch and says, you know, "We have an unidentified flying object right above--toward Henrietta Tafoya's house.
" narrator: After calling in the sighting report to law enforcement dispatch, Tafoya's father grabs binoculars to get a better look at the object.
Tafoya: He got the binoculars and we were just stunned.
I mean, I was like, "Wow.
" I was just stunned.
And you could see, you know, the cigar-shaped UFO with the lights spinning, but there was kind of a glass on the top.
I can say that I saw, like-- like--like humanoid silhouettes.
narrator: Just as in Tafoya's case, for many Native Americans seeing a UFO for the first time can be overwhelming.
Equitz: Just because a UFO sighting takes place on tribal land doesn't mean that it's an everyday event.
These encounters can be just as shocking or awe-inspiring for Native Americans as they would be for anyone else.
Tafoya: In some instances, there's, like, an awe.
They are scary.
These people come from another place.
They come from the sky.
They come from another realm.
And they're powerful people.
narrator: As unsettling as these sightings can be, tribal authorities handle them quite differently from how the U.
S.
government deals with UFOs.
Equitz: Since many Native Americans accept UFO sightings as real, since it's part of their culture, when a sighting does occur, nobody's trying to cover it up.
When Alan tells his story, he mentions that his father called it out over the radio.
He wasn't afraid that he'd sound crazy or that no one would believe him.
Speigel: There's a group called the Navajo Rangers, and they go to places where outsiders are not allowed to.
The Navajo Rangers get such cooperation because they accept this, and this is something that the rest of us should try and emulate when we're dealing with not only UFOs but other paranormal phenomenon.
narrator: The sovereignty of Native American land allows tribal officers the freedom to conduct UFO investigations without fear of repercussion.
Perhaps their kinship to star people makes them protective of these visits.
Does this close connection also give Native Americans the ability to communicate and call upon these star people? Nicholas: There have always been stories that some people seem to have the power to summon UFOs.
Tafoya: There have been stories where my people have prayed, and when their prayers were answered, their answer came from the sky.
narrator: When we return, are some Native Americans able to tap into mysterious healing powers from the star people? narrator: MUFON investigators explain the high frequency of UFO sightings over Native American lands.
Several theories have emerged.
It appears that some UFOs could be attracted to natural resources found in and around reservations.
While others believe that a possible ancestral connection to star people may provide Native Americans with an extraordinary ability to summon UFO visits.
Harzan: One unique and interesting claim is that many UFO visits over Indian reservations occur because Native Americans are summoning them to appear.
[bird caws.]
narrator: Northern California.
Fall, 1991.
Terry, a Native American on her mother's side, draws strength from her family's heritage in order to battle cancer.
Ray: Terry was struggling with an illness and went to her favorite sweat lodge on a Northern California reservation to meditate and pray.
Tittl: Terry said that during her purification ceremony in the sweat lodge she prayed to her star visitors for guidance.
She'd had many UFO encounters throughout her life, most of which she viewed positively.
And so she was looking for another sign from them.
narrator: Despite Terry's prayers, she received no sign from the star people while on the reservation.
Then during her drive home, Terry soon spots something in the sky.
Ray: She sees a brilliant green light in the sky.
She stopped to watch, and this UFO started descending until it landed in a nearby cow pasture.
Tittl: For Terry, this was the sign she was hoping for.
Green is recognized as the universal sign for healing, so she interpreted this UFO encounter as a positive message.
narrator: When Terry returns to her doctor, miraculously her tumor is gone.
Equitz: This encounter provides Terry with a great sense of hope.
And it makes you wonder: Was Terry able to summon the star people and appeal to their healing powers? narrator: Terry's experience suggests a deeper connection between Native Americans and star people.
Not only can they communicate with UFOs, as seen with Dorothea and the women from Yakama, but they can summon them as well.
Nicholas: Terry's experience is incredible and seems to reinforce this special connection between Native American tribes and the star people that we've all heard about.
Tafoya: There have been stories where my people have prayed about maybe the people got sick or something, and when their prayers were answered, their answer came from the sky.
Oftentimes we might have messengers or signs in the sky that might guide our people.
narrator: The strongest connections with star people appear to be through Native American medicine men.
Nicholas: In many tribes, like Zuni and Lakota, there are stories of these sky beings meeting medicine men in canyons and teaching them about how to better understand nature and their land, giving them tools of survival to bring back to their clan.
Mathieson: Some of these stories are pretty remarkable.
It seems like there's a symbiotic relationship between these star people and Native Americans.
I'm not exactly sure what the extraterrestrial beings are getting out of the relationship.
But if these creatures have been teaching medicine men how to better understand nature, does that mean they know our world better than we do? narrator: Could this relationship between Native Americans and star people truly be ancestral? And if so, perhaps the star people serve as protectors and guides, providing a greater understanding of our world.
Harzan: Many Native Americans report that star people bring them messages that reinforce the importance of Mother Earth and the need to nurture and protect our planet.
Mathieson: Native Americans have a greater appreciation of nature than I want to say western man does generally.
They have a greater grasp of the natural world as a living thing, a thing to be respected and admired and appreciated and cared for.
Tafoya: The things that were taught to me from my grandparents and my parents were to be in harmony with nature, to be in harmony with all people if at all possible, and to pay attention to the things that happened, you know, in the sky and all around us.
I've heard stories with regard to these alien encounters where they've had this message that we people of the Earth need to take care of our Mother Earth.
It's just something that we were raised with.
It's something that I believe happens today.
narrator: Does this philosophy come to Native Americans from the star people? And could their sacred lands also provide sanctuary and portals to other dimensions? Whatever the reason, one thing seems clear: There is a unique connection between America's indigenous people and visitors from beyond our stars.
Perhaps if the rest of the world was as equally unthreatened by these otherworldly visitors, we would learn secrets of the universe only hinted at in the files of Hangar 1.
Near Glacier National Park, Montana.
A young boy has a life-changing encounter on his way to school.
Tittl: One winter morning, as a young Blackfoot Indian named Tom is walking to school, he's stopped along the way by one of the elders of his tribe, a member the children call "Old Man Wolf.
" Equitz: Old Man Wolf calls Tom over.
He says he wants to teach him about the strange beings who visit the sacred hill.
On the trail, Old Man Wolf points to odd footprints about half the size of Tom's.
The tribal elder tells him, "Those are the star people's footprints.
" narrator: Tom and Old Man Wolf track the unusual prints up into the mountains.
Tittl: Hiking through the woods, they follow the small footprints for about two miles until they make it to this large clearing on the side of the mountain.
They're standing behind a large rock where they can see that the small footprints lead to an empty circle in the snow.
Old Man Wolf explains that the circle was caused by a star craft when it landed and took off.
He also tells the boy that these beings, the star people, have been coming here for years.
Thousands of years.
narrator: The boy scans the area, hoping to catch sight of these mysterious visitors.
Equitz: While the old man is telling Tom all about the star people, Tom looks at the footprints.
He looks at the spot on the ground.
Then suddenly he spots something out of the corner of his eye.
[engine whirring.]
He looks up and sees a large disc soaring through the sky.
And then as quickly as it appeared, the disc vanishes from view.
narrator: Was tom brought here by Old Man Wolf to introduce him to something members of their tribe have been experiencing for centuries? Native American folklore is filled with stories of otherworldly encounters with interstellar visitors, commonly referred to as "star people.
" MUFON case files, such as Tom's experience with Old Man Wolf, reveal that these stories are more than just ancient legends.
But why are Native American lands a hot spot for extraterrestrial activity? MUFON opens their files to provide the answer right now.
The Mutual UFO Network, known as MUFON, is an independent organization not bound to any government.
They investigate reports of UFO sightings from around the world.
Over the past five decades, they have collected more than 70,000 files, stored at a secure location known as Hangar 1.
Now MUFON is granting access to their vast archive.
These are the files of Hangar 1.
Nicholas: Native Americans have had a long-standing history with UFOs, even depicting them in ancient cave paintings as flying shields or star people on many of their sacred sites.
Equitz: These cave drawings are pretty amazing.
The oldest depictions of star people in the United States can be found in Sego Canyon in Utah, and they actually date as far back as 5,000 B.
C.
Tafoya: My name is Alan Tafoya, and I'm a full-blooded Jicarilla Apache.
My father, when he was alive, he took me to those caves.
And we got to see the drawings.
The way the drawings are made, it's like on the bottom you'll see, like, the earth or the people, and it's very clear that in the sky, that there's a craft in the sky.
And, you know, back then the Jicarillas didn't call them UFOs or flying saucers, you know? They--But they would talk about people in the sky or star people.
narrator: But can we really find a connection between cave paintings of star people and actual contact with extraterrestrials? January 30, 2009.
Navajo Nation, Arizona.
A family's dinner is interrupted when something out of the ordinary appears in the sky over their ranch.
Ventre: An elderly Navajo couple and their granddaughter are eating dinner one evening when they spot a strange bright light in the distance.
Nicholas: The young girl runs to the window to see what it could be.
She's alarmed when the light is not only getting closer, but also descending near their ranch house.
Ventre: The grandfather followed the young girl to the window.
But his reaction isn't fear or confusion.
Instead, he looked calm, almost happy.
Nicholas: According to the family, a disc-shaped craft hovers for a moment, and then actually lands right there on their ranch.
narrator: For the young girl, once the craft lands, the event becomes even stranger.
Ventre: The craft's lights shut off, and then a few moments later a group of four to six child-sized entities begin to leave the craft.
Nicholas: The tiny figures exit and each has some sort of flashlight-type device.
Ventre: These flashlights seem to be connected to the creatures' hands, and each one has its own unique color.
So rays of all different colors from their hands are cutting through the woods.
Nicholas: Another oddity about these lights was instead of flaring out like a normal flashlight, the light projected in a straight line, more like a thick laser pointer.
Ventre: The family watched these entities search around the outside of their house, even exploring the outhouse at one point.
Nicholas: The little girl is scared.
But her grandfather just places his hand on her shoulder, as if nothing strange is going on right outside their door.
Ventre: The elderly Navajo man goes to the door and without hesitation leaves the house, heading straight towards the strange entities.
The grandfather then seems to be communicating with the beings.
Equitz: Not only does the Navajo man seem unthreatened.
It seems almost natural to him.
Maybe it's just me, but I don't think I would feel comfortable just walking up to an alien and having a chat.
Nicholas: After a few moments, the aliens step away and begin to re-enter their craft.
And by the time the grandfather comes back to the house, the UFO is gone.
narrator: It appears that this was not the first time the grandfather met and communicated with these visitors.
Mathieson: The fact that the grandparents do not seem to be even bothered by this extraordinary event, and I see in this a greater understanding of what these beings are.
They see these things as innocent things that are not harmful things.
What that means is their involvement with these star people is intimate.
Tafoya: Star people are beings from other galaxies and dimensions that observe and guide us.
Many Native Americans believe them to be our ancestors.
There is some trust between Native Americans and star people.
narrator: Could this belief that Native Americans might possibly be descended from star people be one of the reasons why so many UFOs are seen over Native American land? And perhaps UFOs frequent these lands because of the safety they provide from hostile forces.
Coming up, what happens when the military tries to investigate UFOs on tribal lands? Ventre: The day after the last UFO sighting, a helicopter slowly comes into view.
When they finally get a good look at it, they see that it's a dark military-looking helicopter, and it's flying right over Satan's Butte, where the UFOs had been descending.
Nicholas: Now unless there is an emergency, the military does not have the right to land on Indian reservations.
narrator: UFOs seek sanctuary on reservation land, when we return.
narrator: MUFON case files reveal a long history of UFO encounters on reservation lands.
Native American folklore suggests there is an ancestral connection with interstellar beings they call star people.
But could visitors from the stars be attracted to tribal land for other reasons? June, 2010.
Navajo Nation, Arizona, near Satan's Butte.
Ventre: On an isolated ranch on the Navajo reservation in Arizona, Jeff, a white ranger who's married to a Navajo woman, says he was unloading tools from his truck when he notices his horses acting oddly.
All of them begin snorting.
[horse neighs.]
Nicholas: The area surrounding the ranch is silent.
Not knowing if there was a wild animal nearby, he grabs his gun and walks along his property.
Nothinguntil he looks up.
Ventre: Hovering over the horse corral is a silver, cigar-shaped object.
The object's about eight feet in height and as much as a hundred feet long.
Now remember, this guy isn't Native American.
So he gets scared.
And instinctively he points his gun at the object and shoots.
[gunshot.]
Nicholas: He hits something.
It sounds metallic.
And then the craft zips off quickly, but he sees it descend into a nearby canyon.
narrator: Jeff is naturally fearful and anxious to report the incident to his wife.
Ventre: He runs in and tells his wife what just happened, and she, being Navajo, explains to Jeff all about the star people.
Over the course of the next week, he and his wife see three more UFOS hovering over the same canyon.
narrator: Now that Jeff understands that Satan's Butte is a sacred site long associated with UFOs, he is less fearful when these sightings continue.
But Jeff does become concerned when one day an unmarked helicopter arrives in the area.
Ventre: The day after the last UFO sighting, they're sitting out on their patio when a helicopter slowly comes into view.
It continues to approach the ranch, and when they finally get a good look at it, they see that it's a dark military-looking helicopter, and it's flying right over Satan's Butte, where the UFOs had been descending.
narrator: What is this military helicopter doing in restricted Navajo airspace? Equitz: There are rumors inside the UFO community about an elite military helicopter unit that exists to investigate and transport UFOs.
Perhaps the military somehow learned of these UFO sightings and sent one of their helicopters to investigate.
But since the military has no jurisdiction when it comes to reservations, they wouldn't have been able to land.
They would have been confined to simply circling the area.
Nicholas: To even get onto most reservations, you have to visit their local tribal center first, even if you're just driving through.
The tribal council, not the state or federal government, generally has jurisdiction over these reservations.
narrator: The couple, concerned by what appears to be a military presence on restricted tribal land, immediately contacts local Navajo law enforcement.
Equitz: It's interesting that after the initial encounter these multiple UFO sightings don't raise any alarm.
But when a military helicopter arrives on the scene, that's when this couple reaches out to authorities.
It just goes to show that for some Native Americans, starrer land, but the U.
S.
military is not.
narrator: Could UFOs be drawn to reservation land because of the sanctuary they offer from the U.
S.
government? Speigel: It's entirely possible that some UFOs, some visitors, may prefer to visit Native American reservations because they might be aware that the military is not allowed on the reservations.
So nobody can actually bother them, and they can come and go as they wish.
Equitz: It could almost make the land serve as a sort of sanctuary.
The locals are friendly and hostile groups, like the U.
S.
government, don't have access.
narrator: While limited access to the land can severely hinder government interference, the seclusion provides ideal conditions for studying these visitors who come from the stars.
Coming up, an unparalleled investigation takes place on reservation land.
Equitz: In one case, all three lookout points spotted for about ten minutes, the light changing from yellow to green.
narrator: And later, is it possible that tribal lands contain portals to other dimensions? Nicholas: At the Four Corners, there are natural energy sources that have long been believed to be pathways for communication and transport of the star people.
narrator: The files expose shocking new connections between UFOs and Native Americans when Hangar 1 returns.
narrator: Hangar 1 has opened its files in an effort to explore the reasons why many Native American lands are UFO hot spots.
Restrictions against government meddling combined with the remoteness of reservation land may be strong factors.
The steady stream of UFOs over one reservation led to the first groundbreaking UFO study in the United States.
Washington state, summer, 1964.
Tittl: One interesting case is the Yakama reservation in Washington state, which to this day has almost nightly UFO occurrences.
narrator: Posted in fire towers, three Yakama women stand guard, watching over the reservation.
Tittl: Dorothea Strurm, Louise Kutz, and Gladys McDaniel each had over 30 years of fire lookout experience, a job that required meticulous and cautious observation over 1.
2 million miles of land.
Equitz: These women were part of a fire watch system that utilized tall lookout towers.
They kept tch r fire and other dangers, but that's not all.
narrator: On the Yakama reservation, they often see more than just fires from these towers.
Equitz: One evening, Dorothea and the other two women are stationed at different towers.
[owl hoots.]
Suddenly, Dorothea spots a reddish orb shoot through the sky and hover back and forth over the tree line.
She signals to the other lookouts, which quickly spot the same glowing object.
As the women watch the orb, two more appear.
Their movements suggest something might be in the woods and they're searching for it.
narrator: The women, accustomed to the presence of these orbs on reservation land, attempt to analyze their movements.
Tittl: This experience was nothing new to these ladies, who were regular witnesses to these UFOs.
The women were trained in mapping, so as more and more orbs appeared, the lookouts tried to triangulate the exact location of these orbs from their viewpoints.
Equitz: These orbs would continually arrive and stay for about three to six minutes before disappearing, as if their lights were just shut off.
Then as one of the lights faded away, Dorothea quietly whispered, "Come back.
" And as if hearing her from 200 feet away, the orb returned to its full brightness.
narrator: The frequency of visits and this ability to seemingly communicate with UFOs prompts the first detailed study of its kind.
Tittl: The occurrences were so frequent that Bill Vogel, the Yakama fire chief, contacted J.
Allen Hynek in 1972 to research their land.
Speigel: Probably the most beloved figure in UFO history was J.
Allen Hynek.
Dr.
Hynek was very well known for his UFO field research studies.
In addition, hwaalso the 20-year scientific consultant to Project Blue Book.
Equitz: After being asked by the Yakama fire chief to research the glowing orbs, Hynek ana fellow researcher created the first ever UFO stakeout field study.
the Yakama reservation with cameras, equipment, and magnometers.
Speigel: The Yakama UFO Field Project was also known as the Toppenish Study, and it was the first of its kind.
It was a designated area on the reservation.
The area was defined by six lookout positions, three on the ground and three higher up at lookout towers.
Equitz: While investigating the area, Hynek's team had multiple sightings.
In one case, all three lookout points spotted a pear-shaped object hovering for about ten minutes, the light changing from yellow to green.
It sat motionless until it shot straight up to a high altitude, and then with a sharp angular motion zipped east at an extremely high speed.
narrator: The extraordinary UFO sightings Hynek witnessed and documented on the Yakama Nation's reservation led him to coin a new classification for these strange craft, called "nocturnal lights" or NLs.
Nicholas: The field report states that there are three attributes of NLs.
One, they are generally bright lights.
Two, they can be different colors, although generally reddish-orange.
And three, they are not attributed to any aircraft or natural object.
In fact, these guidelines are still used by MUFON to this day.
Mathieson: The Yakama reservation UFOs are very interesting.
The fact that they've been seen for generations makes you wonder if there's something special about this location and its people.
But I doubt the UFOs are just hanging around chatting.
It makes more sense that there might be something specific about the area, like a special energy signature or something.
narrator: While the Toppenish Study confirmed consistent UFO activity over the Yakama reservation, it was unable to determine why this activity occurs.
Most agree that more research is needed to determine why UFOs are attracted to this specific area.
Coming up, as additional Hangar 1 files are examined, a new theory emerges involving UFOs and strange geographic anomalies found on tribal land.
Nicholas: Many Native Americans believe that these ley lines are used by star people as a mode of communication, and the area might even be a portal that can transport them home.
narrator: Hidden on tribal lands, Hangar 1 files uncover gateways to other worlds.
And later, firsthand testimony of an awe-inspiring UFO encounterwhen we return.
narrator: The stories of star people have been passed down through Native American tribes for generations.
Statistics show that tribal lands are in fact hot spots for UFOs.
What is attracting these extraterrestrial visitors? Perhaps Native Americans and UFOs have been drawn to these lands for the same reasons, because of the unique energy signature the land emits.
And is it this energy that has made these areas sacred? A look at the region known as "The Four Corners" holds some remarkable clues to this theory.
May 18, 2013.
Four Corners, New Mexico.
Ray: Bill is enjoying a nice desert evening in his outdoor hot tub.
He lives about 15 miles southeast of the Four Corners.
And as he's sitting there, he notices something strange.
A bright object is moving in the sk Tittl: Soon he sees that there are actually two moving lights in the sky, coming from opposite directions.
And he describes them as orbs with no clear edges, bluish in color, almost neon.
He can't keep his eyes off of these objects.
Ray: As they approach each other, another light appears from the east.
And they all eventually stop right over the Four Corners monument, hovering 200 feet apart from one another.
narrator: Bill is just one of many whose curiosity is piqued by the unusual sighting.
Tittl: Bill keeps his eyes on the three orbs floating high in the sky.
Then he notices another group of three orbs traveling the same path.
And all of a sudden, he watches these orbs until all six orbs come together and form a circle.
Ray: Then another object, smaller but with even brighter intensity, comes into view and sits a few feet away as though it's observing the other six.
Tittl: Bill is awestruck and steps out of his hot tub to try to hear the objects.
There is no sound.
Silence.
And then the lights do something even stranger, something that convinces him that he isn't seeing helicopters or military jets.
The six orbs converge into one bright larger orb with the smaller monitor just off to the right.
Ray: And a moment later, all the orbs just disappear, as though the lights were shut But Bill is left speechless and perplexed by this sighting.
narrator: What Bill claims to have witnessed is just one example of UFO encounters in the Four Corners area.
What is it about the Four Corners that makes it such a hot spot for UFOs? Tafoya: The Four Corners area is located on sacred Indian lands, and for hundreds of years there has been a long tribal history of strange sightings occurring around this area.
Equitz: What is it about this land that makes it sacred? Perhaps it's the same quality that is attracting UFOs.
Some speculate the frequent sightings have to do with the fact that the Four Corners sit directly over converging geological ley lines.
Dennin: So ley lines are interesting things.
They kind of have a long history.
At first, they were always associated with special directions in places along the Earth where you would have magic and magical powers.
Now they're more often connected with places where the magnetic field has special properties.
rn is one of many sacred sites around the world that appear to have unique energy signatures.
Nicholas: There are many sacred sites that are both spiritually important as well as home to a multitude of UFO experiences.
Harzan: Other places in the world that possess similar characteristics to the Four Corners, like the great pyramids in Egypt and Stonehenge in England, all have experienced multiple UFO sightings.
narrator: Why would UFOs be drawn to land with unusual magnetic properties? Ray: There's been a lot of speculation that UFOs need to tap into multiple sources of energy found on Earth to fuel their crafts, from manmade energy to natural electromagnetic fields.
Nicholas: Based on these geological characteristics and the number of UFO sightings in the area, we can only assume that these UFOs may be using this area as some sort of energy stop, like a gas station.
narrator: Are UFOs using the Four Corners and other sacred sites as refueling stations? Or could this location serve an even more mysterious purpose? Equitz: Some scientists believe that when ley lines cross, they can generate an intense magnetic power center, which produces its own energy field, known as a vortex.
Dennin: So a vortex in its most general term is any spinning structure.
The most common vortex people are familiar with is the tornado.
One of the interesting things about magnetic fields is they do form these circular structures that are essentially vortices.
Modlin: In fact, the Four Corners monument is actually the symbol that represents a vortex.
Vortexes seem to be an attraction point for UFOs.
narrator: Assuming these vortexes exist, why would UFOs be drawn to them? Nicholas: At the Four Corners, there are natural energy sources that have long been believed to be pathways for communication and transport of the star people.
Modlin: So the vortexes may indicate a specific point where they can move from one dimension to another dimension.
They move between one universe and the next universe.
The vortexes allow a hole in space to do something like this.
narrator: Is what Bill witnessed when the lights blinked out a UFO entering a vortex and disappearing into another dimension? Could UFOs be using these vortexes to traverse between points in space and time? Perhaps this is one explanation as to why so many UFO sightings are on tribal lands.
Coming up, Alan Tafoya reveals his own life-changing UFO experience.
Tafoya: I mean, I was like, "Wow.
" And when we looked through the binoculars, I can say that I saw humanoid silhouettes.
narrator: An astounding up-close encounter when Hangar 1 returns.
Dulce, New Mexico.
August 1980.
On his reservation, Apache Alan Tafoya witnesses a UFO for the first time.
Tafoya: I was, like, 16 years old.
And I had gone back home to my reservation for the summer to get some work.
I was with one of my cousins.
We were at some friend's house on the northern part of town, Dulce, and we were coming home.
And we had a great evening, so we're excited about that.
Of course obviously not thinking about UFOs or anything of that nature.
We're just going home.
narrator: Tafoya becomes transfixed by a strange light in the sky.
Tafoya: I was watching this orange light just kind of bouncing in the sky.
And I was like, "Wow.
" And I was like, "Hey, man, check out that light.
" And he's like, "I'm watching it.
" And then he was like, "I see it, but he seemed to be looking in the opposite direction.
I was looking east, and he was looking west.
And I was like, "No, that orange ball dancing in the sky.
" And he's like, "No.
" He goes, "Look toward Grandma Henrietta's place.
" narrator: Tafoya turns and is confronted by an incredible sight.
saw this big UFO, cigar-shaped.
It was huge.
It had to be, like, a football field huge.
And we both saw it, and I was like, "Oh, my God.
" You know, and we just kind of like--it just shook us.
I mean, we stopped and we just-- we just couldn't believe what we were seeing.
And I was like, "Oh, man.
" I said, "We gotta go tell my dad.
" narrator: Tafoya and his cousin run to tell his father, who happens to be the reservation's chief of police.
Tafoya: We started running toward the house and I said, "I wanna go tell him because, you know, he's gotta see this.
" You know, so people can believe what we saw.
And I'm over there banging on my father's door.
And I'm, like, screaming at him, "Dad, dad you gotta see this! A UFO!" And he opens the door and he looks at us and all my cousin and I could do was just kind of point toward the west of town.
narrator: Tafoya's father sees the UFO and is equally astounded.
Tafoya: My dad looks out the door and he, like, was like, "Oh, my God.
" And he's like--he's the chiefo handheld radio and he calls to the Dolce dispatch and says, you know, "We have an unidentified flying object right above--toward Henrietta Tafoya's house.
" narrator: After calling in the sighting report to law enforcement dispatch, Tafoya's father grabs binoculars to get a better look at the object.
Tafoya: He got the binoculars and we were just stunned.
I mean, I was like, "Wow.
" I was just stunned.
And you could see, you know, the cigar-shaped UFO with the lights spinning, but there was kind of a glass on the top.
I can say that I saw, like-- like--like humanoid silhouettes.
narrator: Just as in Tafoya's case, for many Native Americans seeing a UFO for the first time can be overwhelming.
Equitz: Just because a UFO sighting takes place on tribal land doesn't mean that it's an everyday event.
These encounters can be just as shocking or awe-inspiring for Native Americans as they would be for anyone else.
Tafoya: In some instances, there's, like, an awe.
They are scary.
These people come from another place.
They come from the sky.
They come from another realm.
And they're powerful people.
narrator: As unsettling as these sightings can be, tribal authorities handle them quite differently from how the U.
S.
government deals with UFOs.
Equitz: Since many Native Americans accept UFO sightings as real, since it's part of their culture, when a sighting does occur, nobody's trying to cover it up.
When Alan tells his story, he mentions that his father called it out over the radio.
He wasn't afraid that he'd sound crazy or that no one would believe him.
Speigel: There's a group called the Navajo Rangers, and they go to places where outsiders are not allowed to.
The Navajo Rangers get such cooperation because they accept this, and this is something that the rest of us should try and emulate when we're dealing with not only UFOs but other paranormal phenomenon.
narrator: The sovereignty of Native American land allows tribal officers the freedom to conduct UFO investigations without fear of repercussion.
Perhaps their kinship to star people makes them protective of these visits.
Does this close connection also give Native Americans the ability to communicate and call upon these star people? Nicholas: There have always been stories that some people seem to have the power to summon UFOs.
Tafoya: There have been stories where my people have prayed, and when their prayers were answered, their answer came from the sky.
narrator: When we return, are some Native Americans able to tap into mysterious healing powers from the star people? narrator: MUFON investigators explain the high frequency of UFO sightings over Native American lands.
Several theories have emerged.
It appears that some UFOs could be attracted to natural resources found in and around reservations.
While others believe that a possible ancestral connection to star people may provide Native Americans with an extraordinary ability to summon UFO visits.
Harzan: One unique and interesting claim is that many UFO visits over Indian reservations occur because Native Americans are summoning them to appear.
[bird caws.]
narrator: Northern California.
Fall, 1991.
Terry, a Native American on her mother's side, draws strength from her family's heritage in order to battle cancer.
Ray: Terry was struggling with an illness and went to her favorite sweat lodge on a Northern California reservation to meditate and pray.
Tittl: Terry said that during her purification ceremony in the sweat lodge she prayed to her star visitors for guidance.
She'd had many UFO encounters throughout her life, most of which she viewed positively.
And so she was looking for another sign from them.
narrator: Despite Terry's prayers, she received no sign from the star people while on the reservation.
Then during her drive home, Terry soon spots something in the sky.
Ray: She sees a brilliant green light in the sky.
She stopped to watch, and this UFO started descending until it landed in a nearby cow pasture.
Tittl: For Terry, this was the sign she was hoping for.
Green is recognized as the universal sign for healing, so she interpreted this UFO encounter as a positive message.
narrator: When Terry returns to her doctor, miraculously her tumor is gone.
Equitz: This encounter provides Terry with a great sense of hope.
And it makes you wonder: Was Terry able to summon the star people and appeal to their healing powers? narrator: Terry's experience suggests a deeper connection between Native Americans and star people.
Not only can they communicate with UFOs, as seen with Dorothea and the women from Yakama, but they can summon them as well.
Nicholas: Terry's experience is incredible and seems to reinforce this special connection between Native American tribes and the star people that we've all heard about.
Tafoya: There have been stories where my people have prayed about maybe the people got sick or something, and when their prayers were answered, their answer came from the sky.
Oftentimes we might have messengers or signs in the sky that might guide our people.
narrator: The strongest connections with star people appear to be through Native American medicine men.
Nicholas: In many tribes, like Zuni and Lakota, there are stories of these sky beings meeting medicine men in canyons and teaching them about how to better understand nature and their land, giving them tools of survival to bring back to their clan.
Mathieson: Some of these stories are pretty remarkable.
It seems like there's a symbiotic relationship between these star people and Native Americans.
I'm not exactly sure what the extraterrestrial beings are getting out of the relationship.
But if these creatures have been teaching medicine men how to better understand nature, does that mean they know our world better than we do? narrator: Could this relationship between Native Americans and star people truly be ancestral? And if so, perhaps the star people serve as protectors and guides, providing a greater understanding of our world.
Harzan: Many Native Americans report that star people bring them messages that reinforce the importance of Mother Earth and the need to nurture and protect our planet.
Mathieson: Native Americans have a greater appreciation of nature than I want to say western man does generally.
They have a greater grasp of the natural world as a living thing, a thing to be respected and admired and appreciated and cared for.
Tafoya: The things that were taught to me from my grandparents and my parents were to be in harmony with nature, to be in harmony with all people if at all possible, and to pay attention to the things that happened, you know, in the sky and all around us.
I've heard stories with regard to these alien encounters where they've had this message that we people of the Earth need to take care of our Mother Earth.
It's just something that we were raised with.
It's something that I believe happens today.
narrator: Does this philosophy come to Native Americans from the star people? And could their sacred lands also provide sanctuary and portals to other dimensions? Whatever the reason, one thing seems clear: There is a unique connection between America's indigenous people and visitors from beyond our stars.
Perhaps if the rest of the world was as equally unthreatened by these otherworldly visitors, we would learn secrets of the universe only hinted at in the files of Hangar 1.