Small towns near the military area Area 51 strike coins of alien tourism flowing into the Nevada desert, but the military base is largely a secret military area and no place to migrate anywhere.

- It's a huge area. Secret tests of aircraft are performed, for example various spy planes. They fly there before being taken into traffic and previously hundreds of atomic bombs have been blown in the area. There is a lot going on there that we have no idea about, says Clas Svahn, journalist at Dagens Nyheter and vice president of Ufo-Sweden.

Message to the military

Despite this, 1.4 million people have written on Facebook that they will participate (and 1.1 million people have reported interest) to "storm Area 51". The plan is as simple as brilliant: On September 20, everyone will "meet up at the tourist center and coordinate" and then run in.

One of the participants has attached a small PS addressed to the US military that everything is a joke. On Instagram, the hashtag # stormarea51 in round throws 20,000 posts and rapper Lil Nas X on Wednesday released a new music video for his hit song Old town road. In the cartoon, the military gathers to defend Area 51, but they do not have a chance against the approaching crowd.

Area 51 has a stubborn reputation for being a base for alien research - a reputation the US military itself seems to have started to keep its military aircraft secret.

- In 1947, a rumor spread, which then became more substantial, that an object had crashed in the area. Then the military assumed it was a UFO. Then they changed their mind and said it was a weather balloon, but then witnesses started saying that "it wasn't at all," says Clas Svahn.

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Clas Svahn from UFO Sweden shows a copy of an alleged alien who must have landed on earth. Photo: Johan Dernelius

Can show up alien hunters

That all Facebook users who promised to show up on September 20 actually do so is unlikely, but the US Air Force has taken it safe before the insecure in a statement to the Washington Post: "Area 51 is an exercise area for the US Air Force and we advise against to try to get into the area where we train the US Armed Forces. "

Clas Svahn believes that the chance, or the risk, that at least a number of people may try to enter the area this fall is quite high.

- Whether it's fun or not, it means that a number of people will show up. I myself have been there at the entrance and there are no booms or so but there are lots of cameras and there were guards in vehicles standing and scouting, he says.

The CIA intelligence agency acknowledged the existence of Area 51 as late as 2013.