The Dulce Base
A rumour says aliens and humans share a vast underground base beneath a mesa in New Mexico.
What was reported
From 1979, Paul Bennewitz, a businessman in Albuquerque, became convinced that signals and lights he recorded near Kirtland Air Force Base were alien communications, and that a secret underground base lay beneath Archuleta Mesa, near the small town of Dulce on the Jicarilla Apache Nation.
The story grew through the 1980s and 1990s, with claims of many underground levels and joint human and alien staff, and it remains a fixture of conspiracy culture.
Explanations offered
No evidence of a base has ever been found. Researchers including Greg Bishop showed that Air Force counter-intelligence officers deliberately fed Bennewitz false information to draw his attention away from real classified projects, which helped the story spread.
- When
- Claims from 1979
- Where
- Archuleta Mesa, near Dulce, New Mexico, USA
- Witnesses
- Paul Bennewitz, and the storytellers who followed
- Status
- Mostly explained
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.