Unsolved Mysteries of the 21st Century

The Frigid land of Antarctica is the coldest and most inhospitable continent in the world. It stretches over 5 million square miles and is covered in ice sheets that breach more than a mile deep. The average daily temperature is negative 49 degrees Fahrenheit and wind speeds can reach over 100 miles per hour. There are only scientists who work in research stations scattered across the continent, mainstream geologists have long believed that ancient humans never settled on Antarctica because of its hostile climate.

German geologists collected core samples from deep within the frozen Antarctic seafloor in order to test whether the continent's climate was similar to what we know today. They found that it was, and that this was the most exciting discovery because there is no vegetation allowed to survive under those conditions today.

The Giza necropolis is a famous collection of ruins in Cairo, Egypt. It was constructed during ancient Egypt's fourth Dynasty around 2550 BC. The limestone monuments include immense pyramids and a mysterious stone sentinel known as the Sphinx. The Sphinx is the most recognizable statue in the world and stands 240 feet long, 66 feet tall, and 62 feet wide. Even after centuries of study, the Sphinx holds many secrets that archaeologists are still trying to unravel. It was buried up to its neck in sand for thousands of years, so its history is still being discovered.

Napoleon invaded Egypt in 1798 and raised awareness of ancient Egyptian sites. The Sphinx was buried up to its shoulders until the 1920s, when it was uncovered by archaeologists. The Sphinx was sculpted around 2500 BC by King Catherine as part of his funerary complex, but there is disagreement among scholars about its origins. The Inventory Stella, which dates back 4,600 years, records how Pharaoh Khufu repaired the Sphinx after it was struck by lightning. Some believe the Sphinx is so ancient that it predates any known human history. The body of the Sphinx shows weathering from rainfall, despite being located in the Sahara Desert, leading some to believe it dates back to the end of the last ice age, around 10,000 BC.

Greg and Dana Newkirk live in a normal suburban home just outside Cincinnati, Ohio. However, inside their home is a room filled with objects believed to be cursed. The couple didn't set out to collect cursed objects, but gained a reputation for being good at dealing with them. Visitors are warned that the basement contains cursed objects, but people are still eager to view the collection. Working with cursed objects is a heavy responsibility to keep them safe. The Newkirk's collection includes objects that are considered to have the power to harm anyone who comes near them, such as a cursed deer skull and a deadly ring. People have physical reactions to being around some of the objects. The collection also includes a Bible used during a failed exorcism and a doll believed to spread illness.

There is a wooden Effigy known as the Crone. It is a cursed object. It is unsettling. It was found in the Catskills by hikers. They gave it to us. People who got near the Crone felt anxiety. A man from Canada had a violent seizure after seeing it. We decided it was too dangerous to keep. We returned it to the Catskills. We removed the nails embedded in the Crone in a cleansing ritual. We heard strange sounds. We were terrified. We pulled out the nails. Coyotes howled. The ritual was finished. The Crone was just a block of wood. We had done what we went there to do.

In the Jordan River Valley, there is a unique ridge called Tall el-Hammam. Buried beneath layers of dirt and rock are ruins of an ancient city dating back almost 4,000 years. Archaeologists believe up to 50,000 people once lived there. Some scholars theorize that Tall el-Hammam is actually the ruins of the biblical city of Sodom. The Bible describes Sodom's destruction as an act of God, with fire and brimstone raining down from the heavens. Recent research suggests that an incoming meteor or meteor fragment may have caused the destruction. Evidence includes melted building materials, microspherules, and a high concentration of rare Earth elements.

Rare Earth elements are common in asteroids but not so much on Earth. The middle layer of Tall Hamam has a high salt concentration, coating pottery with thick salt crystals. This is unusual because it's the same salt found in the Dead Sea. A meteor explosion in the sky could be the reason why the city of Sodom is buried in dirt with a high concentration of salt. Some experts believe this is true and point to the biblical story for evidence. The story of Sodom is about two angels who visit Lot and his family. God decides to destroy the city because of its wickedness. As they leave, the Angels command them not to look back, but Lot's wife does and turns into a pillar of salt. The significance of this detail is unclear, but it could support the theory of a meteor explosion. Science can confirm the event occurred but cannot determine if it's an act of God or not.

In 79 A.D, Pompeii, an ancient Roman city near Mount Vesuvius, was hit by a volcanic eruption. Within minutes, the city was engulfed in superheated gas and lava, burying thousands alive. 2000 years later, Pompeii remains frozen in time, with well-preserved architecture, organic materials, and human and animal remains. The excavated ruins of Pompeii offer a breathtaking look at the doomed ancient city, including an intriguing discovery - an ancient Roman structure known as The Villa De Papyrus.

The Villa de Papiri was a luxurious Roman villa filled with sculptures and marble and bronze. It was discovered by chance in 1750 by well diggers who were tunneling through volcanic debris. The villa was once a vacation home of a Roman senator named Lucius Calpurnius Piso. The volcanic ash that buried it preserved not only the physical structure but also a library containing over 1800 papyrus scrolls. These scrolls are an extraordinary record of the thoughts and writings of people who lived nearly 2000 years ago. The villa de Papiri Library is significant because it's the only surviving library from Antiquity with its contents. Scientists at the University of Kentucky have developed a new method known as virtual unwrapping to read the mysterious ancient texts without damaging them. They have been able to digitally scan two complete scrolls and a number of fragments. One exciting possibility is that the original letters written by Jesus's Apostle Paul could have been kept within the library of Villa de Papiri. Such a discovery would represent the earliest Christian material that we have almost dating back to the time of Christ and the disciples.