This time-lapse satellite video shows how the U.S. Army has built a huge island in the Chesapeake Bay. According to Gizmodo, the Army has been building this island since 1998. These images were taken by a Landsat satellite, which is managed by NASA and the U.S. Geological survey.

It appears that the Army began building sand dikes to establish the perimeter of the island, named “Poplar Island.” But it has been nicknamed “Mud Island” because it is made out of the mud and sand dredged up from the nearby Baltimore Harbor.

While no one knows exactly what the purpose of Poplar Island is, it is already starting conspiracy theories that it is an evil lair for devious governmental plans.

According to the government, it is home to 170 species of birds, which sounds exactly like something the government would say when they’re trying to cover something up.

Is Poplar Island a sinister headquarters for secret governmental tests? Or is it the world’s most expensive wildlife refuge? We may never know, but the architecture plans were also released in 2009. (We love how these are called the “Master Plan”)

And here is an aerial shot provided by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers