In January 1948, Kentucky Air National Guard pilot Captain Thomas Mantell died while pursuing an unidentified flying object near Fort Knox, after his P-51 Mustang went into a fatal climb. The U.S. Air Force later suggested he had been chasing a high-altitude Skyhook balloon, but many still regard the Mantell incident as one of the first major UFO cases of the modern era.

This week on The Micah Hanks Program, we are joined by filmmaker Seth Breedlove, whose forthcoming documentary Lost Contact: UFOs After Wartime revisits one of the earliest controversies in the study of UFOs, involving the fatal plane crash that claimed the life of pilot Thomas Mantell in 1948. What does a fresh look at eyewitness testimony reveal about this classic of post-war ufology?

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: Secret Service dismantles telecom threat around UN capable of crippling cell service in NYC
• Archaeologists Have Unearthed a Site in Turkey That May Predate Famous Göbekli Tepe
• Tipsy Chimps? Study Reveals Wild Apes Consume the Equivalent of Two Drinks a Day
• NASA Issues Statement on 3I/ATLAS as Images Reveal the Object Has a Striking New Feature
• BREEDLOVE: The Official Website of Small Town Monsters
• LOST CONTACT: Trailer for 'Lost Contact: UFOs After Wartime'

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, weekly "additional editions" of the subscriber-only X Podcast, the monthly Enigmas specials, and much more.

Like us on Facebook

Follow @MicahHanks on X.

Keep up with Micah and his work at micahhanks.com.

Last week, the Task Force on the Disclosure of Federal Secrets held a hearing entitled "Restoring Public Trust Through UAP Transparency and Whistleblower Protection," during which witnesses and members of Congress criticized government secrecy and dismissiveness around unidentified anomalous phenomena. With participation from military whistleblowers, some of whom expressed concerns over repercussions for speaking out, the hearing's participants argued that existing oversight bodies like AARO have failed to investigate reports adequately.

In this episode of The Micah Hanks Program, we analyze the key takeaways from the recent hearing, along with a new UAP video that was revealed during the event, as we weigh the national security risks that participants say these unknown phenomena may represent.

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: Jeffrey Meldrum Ph.D. Obituary (1958 - 2025)
• UAP HEARING: Restoring Public Trust Through UAP Transparency & Whistleblower Protection
• Newly released video at House UFO hearing appears to show U.S. missile striking and bouncing off orb
• VIDEO: UFO? New video appears to show missile bouncing off mystery aircraft
• ANALYSIS: Do UAPs Conserve Momentum? A Video Analysis to Find the Mass of an Unidentified Orb
• 3D Analysis of the Yemen Orb by Users at Metabunk

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, weekly "additional editions" of the subscriber-only X Podcast, the monthly Enigmas specials, and much more.

Like us on Facebook

Follow @MicahHanks on X.

Keep up with Micah and his work at micahhanks.com.

On an unassuming evening in March 1997, thousands of witnesses in Arizona and surrounding states observed strange lights in the sky. The famous incident, known today as "The Phoenix Lights," remains a staple of modern UFO studies... but is there a deeper story behind this classic "best evidence" encounter?

This week on The Micah Hanks Program, we take a careful look at the Phoenix Lights mystery, as well as recent sightings of "mystery drones," and how biased viewpoints that treat the subject either skeptically or entirely credulously often lead to the creation of "myths of the space age," where no real resolution results. Can such analysis be applied to UAP research in the future in ways that promote better research and more case resolutions?

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: Evidence of 9000-Year-Old "House of the Dead" Unearthed at Neolithic City of Çatalhöyük
• New Site Discovered in Turkey Could Be Older Than Göbeklitepe
• 3I/ATLAS is Now Headed Toward Mars, as Mystery Surrounding Interstellar Visitor Grows
• Scientists Fear "Mirror Life" Produced in the Lab Could Create a Dangerous New Form of Biology
• PHOENIX LIGHTS: Phoenix Lights Mystery: What Were Those Lights?
• MYSTERY DRONES: What are the mystery drones flying over the US? | New Scientist
• THOMAS BULLARD: The Myth and Mystery of UFOs by Thomas Bullard
• JOSHUA CUTCHIN: The Official Website of Joshua Cutchin

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, weekly "additional editions" of the subscriber-only X Podcast, the monthly Enigmas specials, and much more.

Like us on Facebook

Follow @MicahHanks on X.

Keep up with Micah and his work at micahhanks.com.

Since the dawn of the space age, scientists have been scouring the universe for evidence of alien life and possible attempts at communication by intelligent civilizations in the far reaches of the cosmos. While frustratingly little evidence has been found supporting the existence of intelligent life on other worlds, a handful of strange incidents from over the years point to a tantalizing possibility: that attempts at contact have already been made.

This week on The Micah Hanks Program, we examine the famous "Fermi Paradox," as well as possible cases involving messages sent toward Earth by extraterrestrial civilizations, and why some scientists haven't ruled out the search for alien technosignatures on mysterious interstellar objects like the unusual comet 3I/ATLAS.

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 story of a NH alien abduction is set to become a feature film
• Rep. Burlison Introduces UAP Disclosure Act of 2025 as Amendment to NDAA
• Anna Paulina Luna Tells Joe Rogan About Her UFO Experience in Air Force
• SIGNALS FROM SPACE: The Fermi Paradox
• SUTTER: The Great Filter Part 1: The Legacy of Fermi's Paradox
• MELLON: The Paradox of Fermi's Paradox
• THE 'WOW SIGNAL': Mysterious ' Wow! signal': Scientists may finally know where it came from
• MORE SIGNALS? 'Strange' star pulses detected in search for extraterrestrial intelligence
• 3I/ATLAS: Could Alien Technosignatures Be Detected from Interstellar Objects Like 3I/ATLAS?

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, weekly "additional editions" of the subscriber-only X Podcast, the monthly Enigmas specials, and much more.

Like us on Facebook

Follow @MicahHanks on X.

Keep up with Micah and his work at micahhanks.com.

For centuries, humans have wrestled with the mysteries of the cosmos, from the invisible dark matter and dark energy that shape the universe, to hidden dimensions, parallel universes, and the ultimate fate of all cosmic structures. Such questions force us to consider not only the physics of the universe, but the possibility that non-human intelligence—whether biological or artificial—could exist far beyond Earth, or perhaps also closer to home.

This week on The Micah Hanks Program, we look at some of the greatest modern mysteries of the cosmos, as well as the question of whether there is life elsewhere in the universe. If so, could it have already created its own artificial intelligence, and might such alien AI have evolved to superintelligent levels, and could some phenomena we observe today, such as UAP, be linked to such entities?

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: 3I/ATLAS Comet Mystery Deepens with 'Tantalizing' Observations by NASA's SPHEREx Mission
• 3I/ATLAS Was Just Spotted by the James Webb Telescope, Confirming an Odd New Discovery
• Astronomers Have Detected the Brightest Known Fast Radio Burst Ever Seen
• Astronomers Detect Evidence of Matter 'Evolving' Into Dark Energy, Challenging Previous Assumptions
• COSMIC MYSTERIES: How Many Dimensions Are There in the Universe?
• DARK MATTER: The Search for Dark Matter Just Got a Lot Harder
• GALAXIES OF EVERY KIND: Galaxy Types (NASA)
• INTELLIGENT MACHINES: What Is a Von Neumann Probe?
• ALIEN AI: In the search for alien life, should we be looking for artificial intelligence?
• Could AI be the reason we haven't encountered alien civilizations?

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, weekly "additional editions" of the subscriber-only X Podcast, the monthly Enigmas specials, and much more.

Like us on Facebook

Follow @MicahHanks on X.

Keep up with Micah and his work at micahhanks.com.

For centuries, sailors have shared baffling stories of phantom vessels found adrift with their crews missing. Such mysterious occurrences have helped give rise to famous legends like that of the "Flying Dutchman," a ghost ship said to have been observed during severe maritime storms since at least the eighteenth century.

This week on The Micah Hanks Program, we explore several historical cases of ships at sea and aircraft whose crews went missing, like the famous Mary Celeste, the odd tale of the Orang Medan, a blimp whose crew vanished during WWII, and other eerie examples. However, could some reported sightings of phantom vessels throughout time also point to another kind of phenomenon at work behind a few of these famous tales, and the urban legends that become associated with them?

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: Hurricane Erin update: Forecast sees huge storm moving closer to U.S.
• NASA's acting chief calls for the end of Earth science at the space agency
• A Giant Rockfall at Yosemite Decades Ago Caused a Supersonic Airblast
• Light in the sky surprised people across Pennsylvania Last Week. Here's what it was
• GHOST SHIPS: Haunting Mysteries of the World's Creepiest Ghost Ships
• A N.S. ghost ship is fading from memory — 150 years after its crew disappeared
• Daily Mirror Fri Nov 22 1940: "Crew Dies in SOS Mystery"
• The Myth of the Ourang Medan Ghost Ship, 1940 - The Skittish Library
• A ghost blimp over California - the L-8 airship - Zeppelin Museum
• El Caleuche – Mythological Chile (Spanish Language)

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, weekly "additional editions" of the subscriber-only X Podcast, the monthly Enigmas specials, and much more.

Like us on Facebook

Follow @MicahHanks on X.

Keep up with Micah and his work at micahhanks.com.

At 9:23 p.m. on April 14, 1953, the crew aboard a U.S. Navy patrol plane conducting a classified ELINT (Electronic Intelligence) operation during Korean War had an unsettling encounter with the unexplained. Moving silently through the air at nine thousand feet, the aircraft initially noticed a light in the distance that appeared to be signaling to them using Morse Code. Over the hour that followed, the crew found themselves in the middle of a strange series of engagements that could only be interpreted as an aggressive display toward their aircraft by objects of unknown origin.

This week on The Micah Hanks Program, we explore this little-known Cold War-era incident involving a U.S. Navy spy plane's classified mission that led to an aggressive encounter with unidentified aerial phenomena, as well as its implications to the history of the subject and similar military encounters then and now.

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:

• ANNOUNCEMENT: Physics of Exotic Propulsion with Dr. Matthew Szydagis - Society for UAP Studies
• NEWS: Google Search Ranking Volatility Shakes Up This Weekend
• OpenAI will not disclose GPT-5's energy use. It could be higher than past models
• 1953 UAP REPORTS: UFO Reports and Documents from 1953 - Project 1947
• UFO HISTORY: The UFO Encyclopedia - By Jerome Clark, et al
• PROJECT BLUE BOOK: US, Project Blue Book - UFO Investigations, 1947-1969

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, weekly "additional editions" of the subscriber-only X Podcast, the monthly Enigmas specials, and much more.

Like us on Facebook

Follow @MicahHanks on X.

Keep up with Micah and his work at micahhanks.com.

In a rare public interview, Jon Kosloski, Director of the Pentagon's All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) joined astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson on StarTalk Radio to pull back the curtain on the U.S. government's investigation into Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAPs). From law enforcement sightings of black triangles and glowing orbs to the challenges of AI-generated hoaxes and classified sensor tech, Kosloski offered a breakdown of AARO's scientific approach to UAP analysis.

This week on The Micah Hanks Program, following a "State of the UAP" address that looks at the current state of the phenomenon, the history behind what got us here, and issues UAP studies currently faces, we examine Kosloski's recent discussion with Tyson, and look at what insights, clarity, and also a few concerns this episode reveals about the state of UAP studies, along with the facts and fictions surrounding the UAP debate.

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: A Radioactive Wasp Nest Was Discovered at a Cold War-Era Nuclear Site by DoE Officials
• Poison Detection in Wild Pigs Brings Attention to Pesticide Exposure in Hunter-Harvested Wildlife
• "We Call it Megaflash Lightning": Scientists Use Satellites to Find New Weather Extremes
• Organized scientific fraud is growing at an alarming rate, study uncovers
• AARO ON STARTALK: The Truth About UAPs with Jon Kosloski - StarTalk Radio
• AARO: The Official Website of the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office

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, weekly "additional editions" of the subscriber-only X Podcast, the monthly Enigmas specials, and much more.

Like us on Facebook

Follow @MicahHanks on X.

Keep up with Micah and his work at micahhanks.com.

In 1996, a NASA space shuttle mission meant to study microgravity's effects on electromagnetism may have recorded one of the most puzzling and controversial encounters ever filmed in Earth orbit—dozens, and eventually hundreds, of luminous, pulsating objects seemingly reacting to high-voltage electromagnetic fields in space. What were the strange objects, and could they be related to mysterious plasmas that are believed to manifest in Earth's atmosphere, which are sometimes responsible for UAP sightings?

From bizarre luminous manifestations in our skies, to extreme weather events and meteorological oddities, this week on The Micah Hanks Program we explore cases involving anomalous atmospheric phenomena and climatic curiosities, which include eerie glowing plasmas and other unusual manifestations, to an ancient mystery involving abrupt temperature reversals that continue to baffle scientists.

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: 3I/ATLAS is 7 miles wide, the largest interstellar object ever seen
• HOSTILE ALIENS? Is the Interstellar Object 3I/ATLAS Alien Technology?
• DANGEROUS HEAT: Tracking Dangerous Heat in the U.S.
• Historic January 2025 snowstorm in the Southern U.S. | NOAA Climate.gov
• Alabama's rare severe weather event 'is all but certain': Level 5 out of 5 risk in forecast for state
• Pacific Northwest Could See Rare Thunderstorms on Wednesday
• Strange Pressure Disturbance is impact the United States and Canada in the long-range Weather Predictions
• HURRICANES: NOAA predicts above-normal 2025 Atlantic hurricane season | National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
• PLASMAS: Extraterrestrial Life in the Thermosphere: Plasmas, UAP, Pre-Life, Fourth State of Matter
• Explaining the STS-75 Incident (YouTube)
• NWS: "Owlie's Weird Weather!"
• NOAA: The Younger Dryas

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, weekly "additional editions" of the subscriber-only X Podcast, the monthly Enigmas specials, and much more.

Like us on Facebook

Follow @MicahHanks on X.

Keep up with Micah and his work at micahhanks.com.

This week, sudden news of the firing of former AARO Deputy Director Tim Phillips has sparked controversy following a series of interviews in which he discussed UAPs—particularly black triangle craft exhibiting silent flight, low heat signatures, and advanced maneuverability. Though Phillips emphasized these objects are likely terrestrial in origin, possibly foreign adversary technology, although his sudden departure now raises questions about whether his removal was tied to the substance of his comments—or the fact that he spoke at all.

Following our analysis of the latest departure from the DoD's AARO, this week on The Micah Hanks Program we then shift our attention over to the latest findings from the UAP Sightings Reporting System (UAPSRS), where black triangles also emerge as a dominant pattern: dark, silent, slow-moving craft often seen near military airspace. Meanwhile, recent case studies further deepen the mystery; what does recent witness data suggest about the ongoing UAP discussion?

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: 30,000-Acre 'Gothic Fire' Scorches Military Training Range Near Nevada's Secretive Area 51
• Age of INVICTUS: ESA's Bold Hypersonic Initiative Aims to Revolutionize High-Speed Flight
• Astronomers Reveal Betelgeuse Has an Elusive Stellar Companion Linked to Star's Curious Brightness
• 'Yeti blood oath' divides Denver seminary
• PHILLIPS IS OUT: Posting announcing departure from USG work on Tim Phillips' LinkedIn Page
• UAPSRS UPDATE: The UAP Sightings Reporting System

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, weekly "additional editions" of the subscriber-only X Podcast, the monthly Enigmas specials, and much more.

Like us on Facebook

Follow @MicahHanks on X.

Keep up with Micah and his work at micahhanks.com.