It is among the greatest questions humans have ever asked about life and our place in the cosmos: are we alone in the universe? While scientists believe they are closing in on answers to this long-standing question, many UFO proponents throughout the years have argued that the evidence for alien life can be found right here on Earth. On this week's edition of The Micah Hanks Program, we wade into the debate over UFOs and the "extraterrestrial hypothesis," and why some scientists think that the idea could present challenges for the study of unidentified aerial phenomena going forward.   The story doesn't end here... become an X Subscriber and get access to even more weekly content and monthly specials. Enjoy The Micah Hanks Program? Check out Micah's other podcasts here.   Want to advertise/sponsor The Micah Hanks Program? We have partnered with the fine folks at Gumball to handle our advertising/sponsorship requests. If you would like to advertise with The Micah Hanks Program, all you have to do is click the link below to get started:  Gumball: Advertise with The Micah Hanks Program  Coronavirus Charities If you are able, please consider supporting the following charities that are offering relief for those affected by the coronavirus pandemic. Visit our Coronavirus Charities Page to learn more.  Show Notes Below are links to stories and other content featured in this episode:  NEWS: ​​NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope Has Completed Testing   Multiple Explosions Reported on Sun's Surface; Blasts of Energy Head Towards Earth: Watch for G1 Geomagnetic Storm Sunday/Monday THE ET HYPOTHESIS:  The Extraterrestrial Hypothesis: In the Debate Over UAP Origins, Scientists Wrestle With Possibilities… and Biases   X Subscriber Sign-Up BECOME AN X SUBSCRIBER AND GET EVEN MORE GREAT PODCASTS AND MONTHLY SPECIALS FROM MICAH HANKS. Sign up today and get access to the entire back catalog of The Micah Hanks Program, as well as “classic” episodes of The Gralien Report Podcast, weekly “additional editions” of the subscriber-only X Podcast, the monthly Enigmas specials, and much more. Like us on Facebook Follow @MicahHanks on Twitter

The Extraterrestrial Controversy: UFOs and the Debate Over Earth Visitation | MHP 08.30.21.

The Micah Hanks Program is a weekly podcast that covers science and the mysteries of our universe. Taking a critically-minded approach to the study of our world, each week Micah presents commentary and discussions with guests on subjects that include mysteries of physics and astronomy, the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI), UFOs, myths and folklore, archaeology and ancient mysteries, artificial intelligence, futurism, cryptozoology, science fiction, and entertainment. Each week we journey to the boundaries of human knowledge, in search of the most unusual things our world has to offer.

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On March 8, 2024, the Pentagon's All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) released its historical report on UAP, shortly after briefing only a select group of journalists associated with seven mainstream media outlets, none of whom seemingly bothered to fact-check the error-ridden report. "The disappointing lack of critical press coverage of this important report prompted me to begin compiling the insights of UAP scholars and experts who have studied the history of UAP and the US government," wrote former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Intelligence Christopher Mellon, in a recent lengthy rebuttal in response to the report's release.  This week on The Micah Hanks Program, we analyze Mellon's response to the AARO report, along with several intriguing revelations it contains, including the purported existence of a secretive UAP sightings program at Area 51 in the 1980s, how the CIA may have once considered whether UAP were extraterrestrial technologies, and much more.  Have you had a UFO/UAP sighting? Please consider reporting your sighting to the UAP Sightings Reporting System, a public resource for information about sightings of aerial phenomena.  The story doesn't end here... become an X Subscriber and get access to even more weekly content and monthly specials.  Want to advertise/sponsor The Micah Hanks Program? We have partnered with the AdvertiseCast to handle our advertising/sponsorship requests. If you would like to advertise with The Micah Hanks Program, all you have to do is click the link below to get started: AdvertiseCast: Advertise with The Micah Hanks Program Show Notes Below are links to stories and other content featured in this episode:  NEWS:  Iran and Israel's shadow war is exposed. What's next?  World leaders urge Israel not to retaliate for the Iranian drone and missile attack    Bishop and worshippers attacked in another mass stabbing in Sydney     FBI opens criminal investigation into Baltimore bridge collapse, AP source says  AARO:  DOD Report Discounts Sightings of Extraterrestrial Technology CHRIS MELLON:  The Pentagon's New UAP Report is Seriously Flawed   BECOME AN X SUBSCRIBER AND GET EVEN MORE GREAT PODCASTS AND MONTHLY SPECIALS FROM MICAH HANKS. Sign up today and get access to the entire back catalog of The Micah Hanks Program, as well as “classic” episodes of The Gralien Report Podcast, weekly “additional editions” of the subscriber-only X Podcast, the monthly Enigmas specials, and much more. Like us on Facebook Follow @MicahHanks on Twitter Keep up with Micah and his work at micahhanks.com.

Broken AARO: The 'Mellon Report', UAP, and Area 51 | MHP 04.15.24.

In the Autumn of 1957, a series of events unfolded that, for a time, left U.S. defense officials believing that the country was on the verge of war with the Soviet Union, as a pair of mysterious objects were tracked on radar systems making their way toward a series of high security facilities. Before action could be taken, the objects mysteriously vanished, and the story receded into the shadows of Cold War memories for decades, prior to a series of once-secret CIA files surfaced detailing the startling incident. What do such circumstances say about the U.S. military's capabilities in terms of unidentified aerial phenomena? Based on a recent series of documents released through FOIA requests, decades later the U.S. is still struggling to reconcile the problem presented by UAP in our airspace. This week on The Micah Hanks Program, we analyze the ongoing problem that may very well represent the DoD's darkest UAP secret of all: what it doesn't know about mysterious aerial phenomena.  Have you had a UFO/UAP sighting? Please consider reporting your sighting to the UAP Sightings Reporting System, a public resource for information about sightings of aerial phenomena.  The story doesn't end here... become an X Subscriber and get access to even more weekly content and monthly specials.  Want to advertise/sponsor The Micah Hanks Program? We have partnered with the AdvertiseCast to handle our advertising/sponsorship requests. If you would like to advertise with The Micah Hanks Program, all you have to do is click the link below to get started: AdvertiseCast: Advertise with The Micah Hanks Program Show Notes Below are links to stories and other content featured in this episode:  NEWS: The Great American Eclipse of 2024  N.J. earthquake aftershock tally climbs to 39 after Friday’s big tremor. More expected.   Strong Taiwan Quake Kills 9, Injures Hundreds  Weather Service radar, warning systems fail during severe storm outbreak  Media Outlets Sunk By April Fool's Prank of the Navy's New "Caterpillar Drive" Stealth Submarine  Look at What NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Just Caught Speeding in Orbit Around the Moon  BECOME AN X SUBSCRIBER AND GET EVEN MORE GREAT PODCASTS AND MONTHLY SPECIALS FROM MICAH HANKS. Sign up today and get access to the entire back catalog of The Micah Hanks Program, as well as “classic” episodes of The Gralien Report Podcast, weekly “additional editions” of the subscriber-only X Podcast, the monthly Enigmas specials, and much more. Like us on Facebook Follow @MicahHanks on Twitter Keep up with Micah and his work at micahhanks.com.

The DoD's Dark UAP Secret | MHP 04.09.24.

 In 1950, a bizarre story involving the alleged crash of a flying saucer near Aztec, New Mexico, and its subsequent recovery by the U.S. military, sparked one of the most notorious claims in 20th-century UFO studies. Although revealed to be a hoax, why might U.S. intelligence agencies have taken interest in the story, and its bizarre claims about alien bodies recovered from the wreckage? This week on The Micah Hanks Program, after an analysis of the current state of the UFO debate, we reveal why it’s really only another case of history repeating itself. However something that is often left out of the debate over U.S. government disclosure of information about aerial mysteries involves human deception, and why it is so interwoven with the UFO mystery. Have you had a UFO/UAP sighting? Please consider reporting your sighting to the UAP Sightings Reporting System, a public resource for information about sightings of aerial phenomena.  The story doesn't end here... become an X Subscriber and get access to even more weekly content and monthly specials.  Want to advertise/sponsor The Micah Hanks Program? We have partnered with the AdvertiseCast to handle our advertising/sponsorship requests. If you would like to advertise with The Micah Hanks Program, all you have to do is click the link below to get started: AdvertiseCast: Advertise with The Micah Hanks Program Show Notes Below are links to stories and other content featured in this episode:  NEWS:  U.S. Army Moves Closer to Unleashing ‘Dark Eagle’ Long-Range Hypersonic Weapon   Driver arrested after ramming car into gate at FBI Atlanta office in Chamblee  Over 150 students and staff at North Carolina university 'are diagnosed with host of tumors   Investigation Links Russia's Shadowy "Unit 29155" to 'Havana Syndrome' Attacks  First human case of avian flu in Texas raises alarm  What UFO Cultists Can Teach Us About Political Paranoia  UFO DECEPTION:  The Aztec New Mexico UFO Hoax FBI Records on Majestic 12  James Carrion to Podcasters: Deception Inherent to Ufology  BECOME AN X SUBSCRIBER AND GET EVEN MORE GREAT PODCASTS AND MONTHLY SPECIALS FROM MICAH HANKS. Sign up today and get access to the entire back catalog of The Micah Hanks Program, as well as “classic” episodes of The Gralien Report Podcast, weekly “additional editions” of the subscriber-only X Podcast, the monthly Enigmas specials, and much more. Like us on Facebook Follow @MicahHanks on Twitter Keep up with Micah and his work at micahhanks.com.

The UFO Deception Game | MHP 04.02.24.

For years before the beginning of the modern UFO era in 1947, sightings of bizarre, cigar-shaped flying objects capable of unusual aerial feats were reported by pilots during World War II, as well as military and civilian pilots over the Americas. After the war, strange sightings continued involving aircraft that were mysterious for their time... but which look eerily familiar to us today. What were these mysterious objects, and do some of the "UFO" reports from decades past actually point to a secret history of aviation in the U.S. that could explain some of the mystery? This week on The Micah Hanks Program, we look at some of the most compelling UFO reports from over the decades that could point to the existence of experimental technologies developed by the U.S. that have never been fully disclosed.  Have you had a UFO/UAP sighting? Please consider reporting your sighting to the UAP Sightings Reporting System, a public resource for information about sightings of aerial phenomena.  The story doesn't end here... become an X Subscriber and get access to even more weekly content and monthly specials.  Want to advertise/sponsor The Micah Hanks Program? We have partnered with the AdvertiseCast to handle our advertising/sponsorship requests. If you would like to advertise with The Micah Hanks Program, all you have to do is click the link below to get started: AdvertiseCast: Advertise with The Micah Hanks Program Show Notes Below are links to stories and other content featured in this episode:  NEWS:  Key Bridge collapses into Patapsco River in Baltimore after vessel hits support column  Putin Acknowledges 'Radical Islamists' Committed Moscow Attack   Elon Musk’s Starlink Terminals Are Falling Into the Wrong Hands   Lawsuit by Elon Musk's X was an attempt to punish free speech, judge rules  Roswell conspiracy source revealed | Annie Jacobsen and Lex Fridman   BECOME AN X SUBSCRIBER AND GET EVEN MORE GREAT PODCASTS AND MONTHLY SPECIALS FROM MICAH HANKS. Sign up today and get access to the entire back catalog of The Micah Hanks Program, as well as “classic” episodes of The Gralien Report Podcast, weekly “additional editions” of the subscriber-only X Podcast, the monthly Enigmas specials, and much more. Like us on Facebook Follow @MicahHanks on Twitter Keep up with Micah and his work at micahhanks.com.

The Secret History of Aviation: Strange Sightings & Special Projects | MHP 03.26.24.

According to the findings of the DoD's All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO), the object that crash-landed near Roswell, New Mexico in the summer of 1947 was a balloon used during a once-secret covert operation called Project Mogul. These findings, of course, are the same conclusions the U.S. Air Force came to decades ago which were detailed in a pair of official reports that sought to definitively explain what, for many, had once been deemed Ufology's "smoking gun"... but could there still be more to the story?  This week on The Micah Hanks Program, we look at developments that have occurred in the years since the Air Force's 1990s assessments, which were repeated in AARO's recent historical report on the U.S. government's historical involvement with UFOs. Then, we examine an unsettling series of alternative hypotheses about what might have occurred in the New Mexico desert so many decades ago, and whether they could offer a better explanation for one of history's most baffling cases.  Have you had a UFO/UAP sighting? Please consider reporting your sighting to the UAP Sightings Reporting System, a public resource for information about sightings of aerial phenomena.  The story doesn't end here... become an X Subscriber and get access to even more weekly content and monthly specials.  Want to advertise/sponsor The Micah Hanks Program? We have partnered with the AdvertiseCast to handle our advertising/sponsorship requests. If you would like to advertise with The Micah Hanks Program, all you have to do is click the link below to get started: AdvertiseCast: Advertise with The Micah Hanks Program Show Notes Below are links to stories and other content featured in this episode:  HAVANA SYNDROME:  NIH probe of ‘Havana syndrome’ finds no sign of brain injuries  DISINFO:  Supreme Court examines whether governmnet can combat disinformation online OR MISINFO?  White House’s Efforts to Combat Misinformation Face Supreme Court Test BOEING:  Boeing Whistleblower Warned Family Friend 'It's Not Suicide' Before Death  UAP DISCLOSURE ACT UPDATE:  National Archives UAP   Doug Johnson’s post on X MYSTERY DRONES:  Mysterious Drones Swarmed Langley AFB For Weeks NAPOLITANO:  Judge Napolitano on Trump and JFK  ROSWELL: The USAF’s Official Roswell Report The Ramey Memo The Walter Haut Affadavit Haut’s interview with Wendy Connors REDFERN:  Body Snatchers in the Desert: The Horrible Truth at the Heart of the Roswell Story JACOBSEN:  Area 51: An Uncensored History of America's Top Secret Military Base FARRELL:  Roswell And The Reich: The Nazi Connection  BECOME AN X SUBSCRIBER AND GET EVEN MORE GREAT PODCASTS AND MONTHLY SPECIALS FROM MICAH HANKS. Sign up today and get access to the entire back catalog of The Micah Hanks Program, as well as “classic” episodes of The Gralien Report Podcast, weekly “additional editions” of the subscriber-only X Podcast, the monthly Enigmas specials, and much more. Like us on Facebook Follow @MicahHanks on Twitter Keep up with Micah and his work at micahhanks.com.

The Extraterrestrial Controversy: UFOs and the Debate Over Earth Visitation | MHP 08.30.21.

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