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The CIA has finally revealed what was really happening at Area 51.
Area 51 is a highly secretive US military site in Nevada, roughly 100 miles from Las Vegas.
The site is home to an airfield known as Homey Airport and sits within the Nevada National Security Site, which itself lies inside the larger Nellis Air Force Range.
For years, the lack of official information fueled theories about crashed alien spacecraft, extraterrestrial experiments, and even aliens working at the base.
But in 2013, the CIA finally acknowledged the site's existence and revealed what had been happening there.
Declassified documents released in 2013 confirmed that Area 51 had been used to test secret US government aircraft.
The files, released following a Freedom of Information Act request, marked the first official acknowledgement that Area 51 existed.
They focused mainly on the U-2 spy plane and Oxcart surveillance programs, which were tested at the secretive site.
"High-altitude testing of the U-2 soon led to an unexpected side effect – a tremendous increase in reports of unidentified flying objects (UFOs)," the documents stated, per The Guardian.
The U-2 could fly above 60,000ft, an altitude many people at the time did not believe manned aircraft could reach.
So when people spotted something flying that high, some believed they were seeing UFOs.
"U-2 and later Oxcart flights accounted for more than one-half of all UFO reports during the late 1950s and most of the 1960s," the documents said.
The U-2 aircraft had been used for surveillance since the 1950s, including over the Soviet Union, China, and Cuba during the Cold War.
It traveled around the world collecting covert high-resolution photos and measurements.
In 1955, Area 51's remote location made it an ideal place to test the U-2 while keeping the aircraft hidden from the public and America's enemies. But that secrecy also helped create the mystery surrounding the site.
As test flights increased during the 1950s and 1960s, reports of strange objects in the sky also grew.
The Reno Evening Gazette even ran the headline "More Flying Objects Seen in Clark Sky," on 17 June, 1959.
With little official information available, theories about aliens and UFOs continued to spread.
Although the CIA eventually explained many of the historic UFO sightings, Area 51 remains highly restricted.
Classified drones and other aerial military surveillance technologies have been tested at the site more recently.
And now, around 23,000 acres of land surrounding Area 51 have been closed to the public, including Tikaboo Peak.
The peak was considered the last legal location where members of the public could catch a distant glimpse of Area 51 from roughly 26 miles away.
Anyone entering the newly restricted area now risks substantial fines and up to a year in prison.
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) says the closure is meant to protect public safety because of the area's dangerous terrain.
However, longtime Area 51 researcher Joerg Arnu believes secret military projects could be behind the move.
"Signs were set up overnight – literally overnight," Arnu told the U.S. Sun. "There was no public notice, no hearing, no nothing. Signs were simply put up stating that this area is now closed to the public."
Arnu also believes several advanced military projects could now be moving into Area 51.
"There are three interesting projects right now that I think are moving into Area 51, and those are the reason for the closure," he claimed.
"One project is the Boeing F-47—that's the new Next Generation fighter jet. Another related project is the Next Generation Air Dominance project, abbreviated as NGAD. The third project is a new Navy fighter jet, commonly known as F/A-XX," he added.
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