Admiral Richard E. Byrd was no ordinary explorer. A decorated U.S. Navy officer, he made history with expeditions to the North and South Poles. But beyond his medals and maps lies a legend that refuses to die: the claim that Byrd discovered a secret entrance to a mysterious world beneath the Earth’s crust—yes, the Hollow Earth.

The myth begins with Byrd's alleged secret diary, in which he describes flying into a lush, green land beyond the South Pole, encountering advanced beings and technologies unknown to mankind. Some versions of the story even throw in flying saucers, Nordic-looking aliens, and a stern warning from the inhabitants of this inner world.

From a scientific standpoint, the Earth’s interior is molten iron, not a vacation spot with sunshine and mammoths. But hey, we’re not here to ruin the fun entirely. Hollow Earth theories, popularized in the early 20th century, persist thanks to conspiracy theorists and YouTube documentaries with synth-heavy soundtracks.

So, did Byrd really find a secret civilization inside the Earth, or are we just desperate to believe that somewhere, someone still knows how to fly a dirigible?

Whatever the case, Admiral Byrd has taken his secrets to the grave, leaving us with more questions than answers—and one heck of a story to share at parties.