Hello all,

Here is another (and long) attempt to find a satisfactory solution to the Z32 cipher.

The objective here is to propose a coherent solution which is not purely arbitrary (through guessing what the answer could/should be), but which is obtained with an explicable reasoning and minimal assumptions. So, the solution below is only based on the reuse of the keys of the Z408 and Z340 ciphers, as well as on an “out of the box” interpretation of the map attached to the Z32 code.

As this post is a bit long, here is a summary of what I get:

The code could contain the following message: “ON INTER LEFT EXIT, RAD 9, IN 3,5”, pointing to an interchange on interstate 80, in Pinole (junction between IS80 and Appian Way).

The code would be divided into four parts: a text describing the location to be found (part 1), a sort of buffer text (part 2) separating the part 1 from the numerical indications contained in parts 3 and 4, two parts indicating the angle (part 3) and then the distance (part 4) to be measured from Mt Diablo.

The numbers are obtained by matching the clock/compass drawn on the map and two sequences of four letters of the Z32 code. The main (and rather simple) idea is to read the numbers written on the map like letters : the 0-6 and 3-9 axes of the clock should be read like O-G and reverse E-P axes. Then, we assume that these axes are linked with the two sequences O-R-T-G and E-L-(zodiac symbol)-P of the code in order to deduce the values of the angle and the distance.

Concerning the text of part 1 and the units of part 3 and 4, the decoding is obtained in two steps. First, by applying a Caesar encipherment to the alphabetic signs of Z32 (the non-alphabetic signs remaining unchanged), then by applying the key of the Z408 code (with the exception of the ONRETNI part which is obtained by applying the Z340 key).

First step: decode the numbers contained in the Z32 cipher

1/ The idea is to consider that the 4 digits appearing on the clock/compass drawn on the map must, in reality, be read as letters: 0-> O, 3-> reverse E, 6-> G, 9 -> reverse P.

2/ Note that the Z32 contains two sequences of four letters delimited by each of the letters of the two axes of the clock: O-R-T-G and E-L-(zodiac symbol)-P. The assumption is that the two pairs of letters O-G and E-P simply indicate the position of numbers in the code (namely the angle and length to be measured from Mt Diablo to find the bomb site) and have not to be deciphered : they are only some sort of silent signs.

3/ This hypothesis would explain the strange clue given in the "little list letter" to help us decoding the Z32 cipher. The sentence "PS. The Mt. Diablo Code concerns Radians & # inches along the radians "has a odd arrow under"# inches", that reminds 0-6 of the map’s clock.

4/ We now have two numbers coded by the letters R-T and L-(zodiac sign). To assign them a value, the assumption is to refer to the sentence “0 is to be set on Mag. NOT." and read the number 0 as the letter O. By simply placing the alphabet along the clock, we get O = 0, P = 1, Q = 2, etc. So, R-T equals 3-5, or 3.5in, and L-(zodiac sign) must be read as a 9 (the zodiac sign has no value and is perhaps just a kind of signature).

Second step : decode the text

1/ The main constraint here is to not introduce new keys other than those already known from the Z408 and Z340 codes. If we did not make this assumption, the Z32 code being too short and comprising only three repeated symbols, no efficient decoding could be done because we could arbitrarily assign any letter to any symbol and so obtain any solution.

2/ The proposed method consists of successively:

Applying a Caesar encipherment for alphabetic symbols only (it is impossible to apply this method to non-alphabetic characters);

Used the keys of the Z408 or Z340 to the modified code to obtain the solution.

3/ For the application of the Caesar code and the key, the code seems to divide into four quadrants:

Note that the shifts used for the Caesar encipherment, 1-4-7-10, could mirror the 0-3-6-9 numbers drawn on the map. The result is the following:

Which leads to the final result shown at the beginning of this post.

4/ One can wonder about the meaning of the part 2 of this solution : perhaps it’s simply some gibberish code to mark the separation between the text and the numerical indications. One can also imagine, how tempting it is to read the word "LIFE", that it is the same odd phenomenon observed in the Z340 code, which the inclusion of the mention “LIFE IS … DEATH "in the middle of the message.

Third step :find the good location

The length is quite obvious: 3,5in on the Philips 66 Map is equivalent to 22.4mi. Radians 9 corresponds to the reading on a clock, i.e. 270 °, to which must be added the 17 ° of the deviation from magnetic north (average value in 1970 in the San Francisco sector), leading to total of 287°.

The location would therefore correspond to an exit on Interstate 80, at the junction with Appian Way near Pinole. Note that the exact position of the interchange is 3,5in with a radian of 9:06 : the distance between the interchange and the location indicated in the cipher is about 1,9mi which seems to be acceptable considering the map scale.
The difficulty is that this intersection does not currently have an obvious left exit (not on google maps I mean)… But I don’t think that this difficulty necessarily invalidate this solution without further research. This highway seems to have undergone major upgrades during the last 50 years : for example, the philips 66 map shows that the previous exit was at the junction with San Pablo Dam Road 3 miles away. Today, no less than 3 more exits have been added on this short section since the 60’s and it is not impossible that a left exit existed at the time and had been redesigned. In any case, this is clearly a point to explore!

Many thanks for taking the time to read this very long post to the end!