Cosmic Sponge

Giants have been with us since the beginning of recorded history and their stories can be are told in every culture across the globe.  Were these just stories or did they actually exist?  In this episode of Cosmic Sponge we look at the evidence and stories in search of real proof for these larger than life figures from our early history to the modern era. 

In October of 1978, Frederick Valentich took off from Moorabbin Airport on a round trip flight in a single engine Cessna to Kings Island.  Not long after he turn to start flying over the ocean he contacted Melbourne Air Traffic control and began an unusual series of observations, describing what seemed to be a UFO.  Communications ended abruptly, initiating a search and rescue operation but to no avail.  Frederick would go down in history as another possible encounter with a UFO which ended in tragedy.

We welcome back Jason Reuhl to help us review the hit documentary Hellier.  Join us as we explore two season of a wild ride through rural America with the interesting cast of characters that keep you on the edge of your seat, mostly...mostly.

They once existed, enormous birds of prey which dwarfed any known flying species living today.  Teratorns, lived as recently as 12,000 years ago in the Americas.   These large birds may have been the basis for the Native American legends of Thunderbirds.  Large birds that meet the criteria of those supposed mythical beast have been seen from Alaska to Argentinian in modern times.    Could it be that these sightings are merely a case of mistaken identity or is it possible that a small population of these creatures still exist in some remote corner of the world? 

The UFO sighting that coined the phrase "Flying Saucers" and kicked off the modern UFO phenomenon is more than just one man's tale of an incredible event.  The craft seen by Kenneth Arnold in 1947 preceded the Roswell crash by only a few weeks, but he wasn't alone when he observed those strange objects in the sky as we discovered when researching this case.  Kenneth was an above average observer, taking time to clock the speed, size, shape, and flight characteristics of the unknown crafts.  At the end of the day, we are left with a credible sighting and plenty of detail which was corroborated by many other pilots as well as witnesses on the ground.  Learn why the Air Force and FBI considered the validity of this account so significant that it launched the government program which would eventually become Project Blue Book. 

And if that wasn't enough, we have pastries!

The tape recorder was hidden in a drawer of a desk before the two men were left alone in the interrogation room of the Pascagoula police station.  When the officers played back the recording, the men's story only became more compelling.   With over 50 reports of strange lights in the sky and other witness testimony supporting the incident, the Pascagoula abduction became one of the most convincing UFO encounters in modern history.

It was 1995 and Puerto Rico was suffering significant livestock losses from an unknown predator.  Then, a few months after the first deaths were reported, a woman witnessed a horrific beast undoubtedly the culprit of the slayings.  First the local paper picked it up, then a popular daytime talk show, and from there the story spread like wildfire and the Chupacabra was born.  Is it a modern myth in the making or are the many sightings of some new threat lurking in the dark.

Located in the Nazca Desert of southern Peru, incredible images were etched into the landscape over 2000 years ago.  Rediscovered in the late 1930s, these amazing artworks provided researchers a puzzle.  Why were such large and elaborate earthworks viewable only from an airplane or hot air balloon carved into the desert floor well before such technology existed?  Was it a massive irrigation project, a religious or cultural practice, or was it something from the stars? 

George walked into the desert to meet the alien, as if drawn there by some unknown force.  It would be the start of series of alien communications that would include a trip into outer space, a conversion with royalty, and a secret meeting with the pope.

Woodrow wasn't the only one who witnessed the strange craft parked in middle of the road but he was the only one who stopped to have a conversation with the odd man standing next to it.  His life would be turned upside down by men in black, repeat visitations, and the hounding of a curious public.

Elizabeth met the alien on a hilltop by her family farm.  In time, a relationship developed which resulted in a trip to a distant world and an alien child.  Her experiences were well documented with photographs of the alien craft and two books detailing her experiences.   

Before the UFOs of the 1940s, there were sightings across America from the fall of 1896 through the spring of 1897.  Witnesses were in the thousands and descriptions ranged from lights in the sky to cigar or egg shaped craft of unknown origin.  Was this the first wave of UFOs to visit our planet or a fad driven by outlandish tall tales, cleverly designed hoaxes, and the greed of newspaper companies eager to sell more issues to entertain a willing public?  Stick around for the twist and turns of the great Airship wave of 1896 and 1897.