What is the mysterious monolith found in desert near Las Vegas?

A mysterious monolith has been spotted in a remote mountain range in Las Vegas.

Las Vegas police said a volunteer search and rescue unit found the mirrored object near Gass Peak in the Desert National Wildlife Refuge in Nevada.

A monolith refers to a large, single upright block of stone, especially one shaped into or serving as a pillar or monument.

"We see a lot of weird things when people go hiking like not being prepared for the weather, not bringing enough water... but check this out! Over the weekend, (LV Search and Rescue) spotted this mysterious monolith near Gass Peak north of the valley," Las Vegas police said on Facebook.

It is not known where the monolith came from, but police have said they expect social media users will try to solve the mystery.

The BBC reported that the monolith resembles those featured in 2001: A Space Odyssey, a 1968 film directed by Stanley Kubrick.

Some social media users have said the monolith is not new. “Anyone who lives on the west side sees this weekly,” read one comment under the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department's Facebook post. “Yes! Been seeing this for years,” wrote another in a reply.

Another user speculated that the monolith was "man-made but aliens are still among us”. Others assumed it was a work of art, which some people have said about previous monoliths.

Similar monoliths have popped up in recent years. In November 2020, a metal monolith of approximately 12ft was discovered deep in the desert in Utah.

In March, local builder Craig Muir came across one while walking in Powys County, Wales. He told the BBC that the 10ft object seemed to be carefully planted.

Mr Muir said he was "taken aback" when he spotted what he assumed was "some sort of a UFO".

There have also been sightings in Romania, central California, and in the well-known Fremont Street in downtown Las Vegas.