A Mysterious monolith discovered in the Utah desert, similar to one featured in 2001: A Space Odyssey

A giant mystery slab made up of metal has gained the attention of millions of people, as to how such a Monolith or a giant structure can be in a remote part of southern Utah.

This object was first spotted by a helicopter pilot and wildlife officers last week. This object immediately drew its comparisons with the monolith featured in 2001: A Space Odyssey as well as inviting suggestions that it could be the work of extraterrestrials being.

Bret Hutchings, the helicopter pilot, had viewed the big metal slab up close and guessed it was probably the work of an artist of about 3 meters high.

“I’m assuming it’s some new wave artist or something or, you know, somebody that was a big 2001: A Space Odyssey fan,” Pilot told the local news station, KSLTV, which first reported on this matter.

The work on the slab was compared to many minimalist sculptors, including artist John McCracken, who died in 2011. A spokesperson for his gallerist told The Guardian that the mystery object was not one of his works and that it could be a work by a fellow artist paying homage to McCracken.

However, he later told the New York Times that it could actually be a McCracken.

“The gallery is divided on this,” he said. “I believe this is definitely by John.”

“Who would have known that 2020 had yet another surprise for us? Just when we thought we had seen it all. Let’s go see it.”

Well, one thing is clear that without any authorization, it is illegal to install structures or art on federally managed public lands, according to Utah’s department of public safety (DPS). “No matter what planet you’re from”, DPS said in a statement.

The agency has said that it does not plan to reveal the exact location of this object. “It is in a very remote area and if individuals were to attempt to visit the area, there is a significant possibility they may become stranded and require rescue,” DPS said.

Well, that’s not going to stop Reddit users from identifying its likely whereabouts, and also discussing theories about the ways how the object could have got there and why.

A Reddit user in zoomed-in photos of the structure noted there were lines by the base of the slab. Suggesting a rock saw had been used to put it in the ground and that it could be held together with screws, dispelling the theory it could be one large hunk of metal.

This structure also caused some controversy in the geography world, after Utah’s government used the word “monolith” to describe the object.

A monolith is technically a geographic feature made of stone, while this slab appears to be made of metal. However, Merriam Webster’s dictionary allows for a looser interpretation of monolith as “a massive structure” and it is the word used to describe the structure director Stanley Kubrick made famous in 2001: A Space Odyssey.