# Storm Area 51

> A joke Facebook raid drew 2 million RSVPs and became a Nevada festival weekend.

- Owner: Matty Roberts (Facebook event creator)
- Kind: Meme & format
- Sector: Culture (no sector)
- Seed date: 2019-06-27
- Observed peak date: Week of Sep 22, 2019
- Date basis: Observed peak within the documented measurement window; not an all-time maximum. Dates use the stated precision; chart positions are date anchors.
- Spread Score: 57 (Notable), v1.3
- Mechanics: Response chain, Platform jump, Press loop, Real-world spectacle, Controversy

## Summary

Roberts posted a joke Facebook raid; memes, celebrity posts, a music video and brands followed. Wikipedia's seven-day peak ended September 22. About 75 people gathered at a gate on raid morning; Rachel's festival peaked at 3,000.

## Timeline

- 2019-06-27 — Matty Roberts (Facebook) — Roberts created a joke Facebook event to raid Area 51 on September 20.
- Jul 2019 — r/OutOfTheLoop users (Reddit) — Reddit users circulated Area 51 memes and asked about the planned raid.
- 2019-07-12 — ABC News (Press) — ABC News reported 496,000 users marked the Facebook event as going.

The full timeline, metrics and sources are on the case page, or via the Pro API (https://howitspread.com/developers).

Canonical URL: https://howitspread.com/cases/storm-area-51

Cite as: How It Spread (2026). “Storm Area 51.” Case HIS-01478. Spread Score v1.3: 57/100. Updated 2026-10-23. https://howitspread.com/id/HIS-01478