--- title: The Signs at the Area 51 Raid Event Are Out of This World description: This weekend, alien enthusiasts are descending on Area 51 following a viral Facebook event and ensuing music festival. canonical: https://time.com/5682343/area-51-raid-signs/ author: Raisa Bruner article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2019-09-20T16:02:09.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-14T08:28:31.543Z og:title: The Signs at the Area 51 Raid Event Are Out of This World og:description: As the "Storm Area 51" event unfolds, it's the creative signage that stands out og:url: https://time.com/5682343/area-51-raid-signs/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt60fd1890bf473077/698a033809208f803c415941/alien-hunters-area-51.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1024 og:image:height: 576 og:image:alt: US-PEOPLE-AREA 51 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: The Signs at the Area 51 Raid Event Are Out of This World twitter:description: As the "Storm Area 51" event unfolds, it's the creative signage that stands out twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt60fd1890bf473077/698a033809208f803c415941/alien-hunters-area-51.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # The Diehard Enthusiasts at the Area 51 Raid Event Came Prepared With the Most Out of This World Signs > Sponsored content. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=42e5a525-011d-4dcc-8c03-75bc56b97bbb&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Laughs, Masks and a 'Sense of Community.' Most People Came in Peace to the Area 51 Raid. Here's What Actually Happened [Watch (HLS stream): Laughs, Masks and a 'Sense of Community.' Most People Came in Peace to the Area 51 Raid. Here's What Actually Happened](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/v5N0149F.m3u8) (1:42)  _Published 2019-09-20. With lime green alien suits and tin foil face masks, guests of the original Alienstock music festival gave extraterrestrials a run for their money._  by [Raisa Bruner](https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Sep 20, 2019 4:02 PM UTC  by [Raisa Bruner](https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Sep 20, 2019 4:02 PM UTC It’s Sept. 20 — which means it’s the big day for followers of the [“Storm Area 51” raid](https://time.com/5682078/area-51-raid/) that’s been percolating since [earlier this summer](https://time.com/5652390/area-51-alienstock-festival/). And the attendees of the viral-Facebook-event-turned-[Alienstock-music-festival](https://time.com/5679274/alienstock-bands/) are not disappointing. They’ve come prepared with signs and plenty of support for the supposed extraterrestrial questions that make the military base of [Area 51](https://time.com/5637612/area-51-psychology/) such an intriguing mystery to many. Millions of people RSVPed to the original Area 51 raid, but those that have made the final trek to the small, remote desert town of Rachel, Nevada are the true diehard alien enthusiasts. See: their signage, displayed and captured by news photographers as the so-called “alien hunters” arrived near an entrance to Area 51 to perform a kind of protest. From “Locked up for what?” to “Save ET from the government” to “Clap alien cheeks” and “Raid that alien booty,” it’s an admittedly creative mashup of meme language and extraterrestrial terminology, with conspiracy theories thrown in to boot. Government representatives and event organizers have repeatedly [warned against](https://time.com/5629630/visit-area-51/) attendees taking any drastic measures towards actually raiding the heavily-secured territory. But that doesn’t seem to be stopping the enthusiasm of the alien fans who have come out to take part in one of the strangest social-media-driven events of the past decade. In Rachel, they’ll find facilities provided by [Alienstock](https://alienstockparking.com/), a music festival that will feature acts like the Brothers of Alien Rock and Speed of Light. On Thursday, original event planner Matty Roberts [hosted an event](https://www.reviewjournal.com/entertainment/entertainment-columns/kats/area-51-celebration-creator-descend-on-downtown-las-vegas-1852283/) in downtown Las Vegas. Another festival, [“Storm Area 51 Basecamp,”](https://www.stormarea51basecamp.com/) is set up at the Area 51 visitor center in nearby Hiko, NV and will feature DJs like Paul Oakenfold and “alien experts.” But for now, as things get started near Area 51, at least we have the signs. > [](https://twitter.com/rurusantos08%5F/status/1175039179656294400) > [](https://twitter.com/DlANYSUS/status/1175016057309782016) > [](https://twitter.com/atnotfound/status/1175035478069972992) > [](https://twitter.com/mickakers/status/1175015197464911872) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5682343/area-51-raid-signs/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5682343/area-51-raid-signs/"},"headline":"The Diehard Enthusiasts at the Area 51 Raid Event Came Prepared With the Most Out of This World Signs","datePublished":"2019-09-20T16:02:09.000Z","dateModified":"2026-10-14T08:28:31.543Z","description":"\"Locked up for what?\"","url":"https://time.com/5682343/area-51-raid-signs/","keywords":["Newsfeed","viral","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt60fd1890bf473077/698a033809208f803c415941/alien-hunters-area-51.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Raisa Bruner","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt60fd1890bf473077/698a033809208f803c415941/alien-hunters-area-51.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"US-PEOPLE-AREA 51","caption":"Area 51 raid signs","creditText":"BRIDGET BENNETT&AFP/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5682343/area-51-raid-signs/","name":"The Diehard Enthusiasts at the Area 51 Raid Event Came Prepared With the Most Out of This World Signs"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Laughs, Masks and a 'Sense of Community.' 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