SKINWALKER SCIENCE
Investigating Utah's most notorious ranch
Skinwalker Ranch, formerly Sherman Ranch, for 200 years a hotspot featuring all manner of paranormal activity – poltergeist phenomena, UFOs, cattle mutilation, crop circles, mysterious fireballs, and invisible objects emitting harmful magnetic fields (see FT169:44-47, 363:38-41 )– was recently the subject of a scientific investigation, accompanied by a film crew. The first series (eight episodes) of the ensuing documentary, The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch, was broadcast by the History Channel earlier this year. The 512-acre (207 ha) ranch, situated in northeast Utah and said to have been cursed by a Navajo shaman, derives its name from Native American shapeshifters (aka skinwalkers), malevolent witches able to assume the body of a coyote or any other animal. Indeed, large animals with piercing red eyes that are apparently impervious to bullets have been seen prowling around the ranch.
Aerospace engineer and astrophysicist Dr Travis Taylor initially recorded unusually high ionising radiation levels at the site, which he was unable to account for; he subsequently led a research team, including scientists from the University of Alabama in Huntsville, investigating the ranch in summer 2019. The team employed lasers, groundpenetrating radar and drone thermography.
Real estate mogul and tech investor Brandon Fugal had purchased the ranch in 2016 with a view to studying its mysteries; 2019, however, was the first time a film crew had been allowed on site. They were faced with various technical difficulties; camera equipment failed for no apparent reason, fully-charged batteries were suddenly drained of all power, and an unmanned observation balloon unaccountably disappeared when it reached one mile (1.6km) high. Several anomalous and inexplicable electromagnetic readings were recorded, such as abnormally high levels of radiation. One of the researchers spoke of “phenomena that cannot be explained by human technology.”
The weirdness increased when all five members of the team observed a silver object flying above the ranch, which they managed to capture on film; below, an entire herd of seemingly agitated cows ran across a field from one side to another; afterwards, at least one of the scientists felt nauseous. Other people living in the area have witnessed silver flying objects overhead, including Brandon Fugal, who described seeing a 40-50ft (12-15m) long
Dr Travis Taylor, Dr Matt Turner and Skinwalker team members prepare to launch an instrument payload to measure electromagnetic anomalies. BELOW LEFT: Brandon Fugal, the current owner of Skinwalker Ranch.
silver-greyish disc-like craft.
Fugal bought the ranch from its former owner, the aerospace billionaire Robert Bigelow, who had spent 20 years trying to uncover its secrets. To date, Bigelow has not released his findings; this secrecy is perhaps connected to his involvement in a Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) study of Skinwalker Ranch. The DIA’s research programme was known as the Advanced Aerospace Weapons System Applications Program (AAWSAP), and Bigelow was awarded a $22 million government contract to “study and generate reports on exotic science, UFOs, and other anomalous phenomena”.
Fugal has outfitted the place with upgraded sensors and video cameras, and rebuts the notion that he intends to market Skinwalker as a “paranormal retreat” or tourist destination. “The ranch isn’t some place for ghost hunters to get their jollies. It’s a serious scientific endeavour that requires patience and humility, and I have committed significant resources dedicated to discovering the truth of what is really happening,” he said, adding that he had amassed credible evidence for “anomalous injuries, footage of anomalous aerial phenomena, transient EMF and a whole array of other bizarre things,” including numerous witnesses to UFO sightings on the property, sometimes in the company of other persons who were thus able to corroborate the sightings.
Asked to expound his own theory of what was going on at the ranch, Fugal answered: “I have no idea. Perhaps it’s an intelligence from another reality or dimension. Perhaps it is some unknown natural phenomenon. I’m open to many possibilities.” His research continues. vice.com, 10 Mar; S.Express, 19 Apr; uah. edu, 26 May 2020.
“The ranch isn’t some place for ghost hunters to get their jollies”