The Micah Hanks Program

This week on the program, as a deadly heatwave has been sweeping across the country we look at what’s been happening in the news, including a brief tribute to the life and work of Rosemary Ellen Guiley, who suddenly passed away late last week at the age of 69. Our heart goes out to the many friends and family members who thought fondly of her; she will certainly be missed.

Then we shift our attention to the remarkable achievements of the crew of Apollo 11. 50 years ago this week, NASA put men on the moon in one of the greatest technological achievements of the 20th century; joining us to discuss the Apollo 11 anniversary is Rod Pyle, the editor-in-chief of Ad Astra, the official publication of the National Space Society, and author of a number of books that include Heroes of the Space Age, Space 2.0, Interplanetary Robots, and several others. 

Rod has a Master’s Degree from Stanford University and a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Art Center College of Design. He studied astronomy and geology at UCLA, and worked in public outreach at the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles. Rod also designed and wrote the Apollo Leadership Development Experience in association with The Conference Board and NASA’s Johnson Space Center. Rod has written at length about the Apollo missions, and his latest book, First on the Moon: The Apollo 11 50th Anniversary Experience,  can be found at his website.

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On this edition of the program, the debate over the use of straws continues, as we learn of a bizarre case of “death by metal straw” that occurred in the United Kingdom, while environmentally-minded bans of plastic straws are still in the works. Then, after other news that includes the science behind Hollywood’s latest sci-fi “reboot,” we shift our attention over to one of the be best-kept secrets in American Government: the secretive installation known as Area 51.

The famous facility at Groom Lake has long been the subject of rumors and speculation, particularly after it became a household name in the 1990s, following Bob Lazar’s peculiar rise to fame for having allegedly worked there. During the Cold War, the CIA’s top-secret spy planes were tested at the Nevada site, for use in reconnaissance missions over the U.S.S.R. “Much of the testing took place at the facility at Groom Lake,” a CIA history of the operation reads, “a dry lakebed near Las Vegas, Nevada, in an isolated area that came to be known as Area 51 and Watertown. The area was chosen by top officials of the U-2’s Development Projects Staff who flew to Nevada in search of a site where the U-2 could be tested safely and secretly.”

However, how big a secret was Area 51, also known as “Watertown” and a variety of other things over the years? We look at recently declassified information about the highly-secretive site, and why some historians and aviation enthusiasts would argue that America’s biggest secret was never all that secret, after all.

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@MicahHanks

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After an unusual series of earthquakes shook the west coast over the last few days, we lead off this week with a look at why some scientists think they’re a bit out of the ordinary (even for an area like Southern California). Also in recent news, President Donald Trump recently addressed the ongoing reports of UFOs by Navy pilots, which one former MI5 employee, Nick Pope, called “refreshing.” However, has anything of substance actually been said on the issue, either by this administration, or those in years past? Then later in the program, we devote a lengthy discussion to one of the most famous–and controversial–home movies ever to be made: the famous Patterson-Gimlin film of 1967, which purportedly depicts a female sasquatch walking near Bluff Creek, California.

While debate has raged over the authenticity of the film and its alleged subject for more than half a century, a recent 4K enhancement was uploaded by YouTube user “Bigfoot AI”, which provides some striking new clarity and details. It is only the latest in a long series of digital enhancements that have occurred over the years, but is there truly anything new we can glean about the film, and its controversial subject, after all this time? Whether or not the Patterson-Gimlin film will offer final “proof” of the existence of Sasquatch, perhaps the most compelling thing about it has been the fact that it has never been conclusively proven to be a hoax… although that’s not to say that there are no problems with the story. We take a deep look at the controversy, and the story behind the film, on this edition of the program.

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@MicahHanks

@Gralien Report

This week on The Gralien Report we lead off in advance of Fourth of July with a discussion about one of Micah’s favorite films from childhood: Independence Day, starring Will Smith and Bill Pullman. The discussion of Area 51 and claims of alien crash retrievals can’t be had these days without mention of the most famous alleged employee at S4, Bob Lazar, whose strange life experiences were the recent subject of a documentary.

We also touch on how an asteroid early warning system detected a near-miss over the weekend, which happens to coincide with the anniversary of the famous Tunguska Event of 1908… but is this purely a coincidence? There are reasons to suspect that it’s not… finally, we are joined by guest Susan Masino, a rock ‘n’ roll journalist who has chronicled the history of the famous Australian rockers AC/DC since their early days, as well as the Hank Williams family and other institutions in the history of popular music. Susan is also the author of the book The Secrets of the Universe, and she joins us to discuss her many stories of unusual experiences and strange coincidences.

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Sign up today and get access to the entire back catalog of Gralien Enigmas, in addition to weekly installments of the “additional edition”, the Gralien X Podcast. You can also“Like” us on Facebook, or sign up to follow us on Twitter:

@MicahHanks

@Gralien Report

This week, we lead off with big news from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab, who is launching a new atomic clock into space on a Falcon Heavy rocket… how can a clock in space make future travel to other planets more effective? We also look at several stories of odd and out-of-place animals, as well as the most recent footage obtained of a giant squid in U.S. coastal waters, and a new study where grey seals were taught to sing… and even learned the Star Wars theme song.

Then in hour two, we celebrate the anniversary of the sighting that put “flying saucers” on the map… even though the sighting didn’t really involve objects of this description. Kenneth Arnold became the first high-profile UFO witness on June 24, 1947, after he claimed that he observed a fleet of objects moving at incredible speed over Mount Rainier, Washington. But what did Arnold really see during that fateful solo-flight over the northwest, and more importantly, how have the variety of descriptions of it that appeared over the years shaped attitudes about the modern UFO enigma?

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@MicahHanks

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This week on The Gralien Report, a mystery surrounds a famous tree that inspired one of the beloved children’s book author Dr. Seuss’s most famous titles… elsewhere, a swarm of earthquakes has been occurring around the United States, rattling residents from California to Ohio; but do tremblors also portend trouble in Wyoming’s Yellowstone National Park? Maybe not… and we look at all the reasons why.

Then later in the program, after an update on Florida’s alleged “Skunk Ape,” the legendary Irish conservationist and former big game hunter Peter Byrne joins us, who devoted decades of his life to the search for Sasquatch in the Pacific Northwest. Byrne chimes in about the “story behind the story” of the FBI recently releasing their files on Bigfoot.

Then in the second hour, after offering a resolution to a missing person incident, we shift our attention to recent statements by Donald Trump that he had had a “short meeting” about UFOs in the Oval Office. While there has been much speculation about the nature of this “briefing,” former senator Harry Reid recently spoke in defense of Luis Elizondo, a former DoD employee who says he was the head of the Pentagon’s Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program, which studied UFOs for several years. We look at these, and other updates this week on the podcast.

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@MicahHanks

@Gralien Report

This week on The Gralien Report, a mysterious object was recently filmed in the skies over China, prompting discussion of unidentified flying objects from its state-sponsored media… meanwhile here in the United States, the ongoing debate over UAP, what they could be, and how best to study them continues.

However, the big story in the news this week arrives courtesy of The Intercept, in a piece by journalist Keith Kloor that raises a number of questions about former AATIP chief Luis Elizondo, the star of the new History Channel series Unidentified: Inside America’s UFO Investigation. Was Elizondo indeed the chief of the Pentagon’s unidentified aerial phenomenon study group, as he says he was? Joining us to discuss this is our friend and correspondent Lt. Tim McMillan, who was quoted in the recent piece at The Intercept, and who offers his own insights on the state of affairs pertaining to the ongoing saga of the Pentagon’s study of UFOs.

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@MicahHanks

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This week on The Gralien Report, Micah is going viral after Tweeting about the New York Times, who recently offered a special report on the ongoing UAP enigma in an article co-written by journalist Leslie Kean. We spend the duration of the program delving into the story and looking at a variety of contrasting views in the American media pertaining to it.

Stories covered on this week’s podcast include the following:

* New York Times: The Latest in the ongoing New York Times UAP Saga

* The Drive: F/A-18 Pilots Disclose Recent UAP Encounters, New Radar Tech Key In Detection

* NY Post: The Pentagon finally admits it investigates UFOs

The UAP enigma remains among the most baffling mysteries of modern times… are we any closer to unraveling this mystery? We delve into this, and other questions on this week’s edition of The Gralien Report. 

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@MicahHanks

@Gralien Report

On this edition of The Gralien Report, we remember the life and work of celebrated UFO advocate and nuclear physicist, Stanton Friedman, whose life’s work had been to speak before audiences all over the world on the subject of UFOs, and why he believed science should approach the subject seriously.

We also touch on the recent commentary by one former USAF Science Advisor, who described in an op-ed piece the varieties of ways that science and technology might help the U.S. Navy and other military branches study unusual objects in our skies. Elsewhere, Chris Mellon of the To the Stars Academy has also written a piece for The Hill, in which he makes the case that Congress needs to study UFOs, and reveal their findings to the public. Finally, we then feature a “classic” interview Micah conducted with Stanton Friedman a number of years ago, in which he touches on many different aspects of his long-held interest in the subject to which he devoted years of study.

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@MicahHanks

@Gralien Report

This week on The Gralien Report, a mysterious and ancient life form was recently discovered in a swamp in North Carolina, which causes us to wonder about other claims of odd animal life from the area in years past. We also look at recent news in the way of ancient mysteries, which includes a check in with geoarchaeologist Christopher Moore, who presents new findings from South America in relation to an ancient impact that might have occurred over the Americas. Finally, what is the deepest hole ever dug by humankind, and how is it related to an odd recording that appeared on late-night radio many years ago?

In the second hour, we turn our attention to a recent incident which occurred along the Appalachian Trail, which reminds Micah of a personal experience he had many years ago in our National Forests, as well as famous disappearances that have occurred there. However, when it comes to unusual cases of missing persons, there is perhaps none more famous than the disappearance aviator Amelia Earhart. However, what led one group of investigators to describe an unusual lead in the disappearance with the codename “Nessie”? We look at all this, and more on this week’s Gralien Report Podcast. 

Here are links to stories covered on this week’s podcast:

* In NC swamp, researcher finds tree older than Christianity

* Hams Help Trace “Mystery” Signal Disrupting Keyless Entry Devices in Ohio

* French village offers reward to anyone who can decode ‘mystery’ rock inscription

* King Tut’s Sisters Took the Throne Before He Did, Controversial Claim Says

* The deepest hole we have ever dug

* Man arrested in deadly machete attack on Appalachian Trail hikers

* Was Earhart’s Plane Wreckage Photographed in 1937?

Join us and become a member of Gralien X for more great podcasts and bonus monthly specials.

Sign up today and get access to the entire back catalog of Gralien Enigmas, in addition to weekly installments of the “additional edition”, the Gralien X Podcast. You can also“Like” us on Facebook, or sign up to follow us on Twitter:

@MicahHanks

@Gralien Report