The Micah Hanks Program - Micah Hanks

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UFOs on Radar: Echoes, Angels, and UAP | MHP 03.29.21. Mar 30, 2021

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In 1956, one of the most widely-regarded UFO incidents in history occurred over airbases in the eastern UK, where unusual objects were both tracked on radar and also pursued by pilots. Even the famous Condon Committee's investigators appeared to be perplexed by the incident, which depicted one of the most widely-discussed cases involving UFOs on radar... but is there cause for reconsidering the case, and the facts about it that are commonly reported?

Joining us is Dr. David Clarke, Associate Professor in the Department of Media Arts and Communication at Sheffield Hallam University, UK. Dr. Clarke's new article in the Fortean Times, "Angels and Echoes: UFOs on Radar" casts a skeptical eye at some of the more popular radar visual incidents from over the years, and asks some necessary hard questions about the broader UAP topic. We discuss this with him, as well as more modern radar visual encounters, on this week's edition of The Micah Hanks Program.

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Pilot UFO Encounters: UAP and Aviation Safety | MHP 03.22.21. Mar 23, 2021

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On a Sunday afternoon over Greene County, New York in 2015, a pilot encountered something unlike anything he had ever seen before in the sky, or anywhere else. The object, which appeared to be a bright, shimmering dome under which protruded a pair of antennae, sped toward his aircraft at incredible speed, nearly colliding with his plane before ascending toward a cloud bank and joining a pair of similar objects.

Such pilot encounters have been logged for years by NASA's Aviation Safety Reporting System, although little is done with incidents involving pilot UFO encounters. The same cannot be said of the National Aviation Reporting Center on Aerial Phenomena (NARCAP), whose director of research Ted Roe had collected and analyzed reports of pilot encounters with unidentified aerial phenomena for decades. Roe joins us to discuss these investigations, what trends the data may show us about pilot UFO encounters, and whether they represent a hazard to aviation... all on this week's edition of The Micah Hanks Program.

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Lost Records of the Ancients | MHP 03.15.21. Mar 16, 2021

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It was once the nexus of culture and knowledge in the ancient world… a center of the arts and intellectual development unlike any seen before the Hellenistic age. Though arguably, there is nothing that the ancient city ever boasted that quite rivals the mystique of one of its most famous destinations, and one of history's greatest lost treasures: the fabled Library of Alexandria.

While the stories of the library's destruction and the lost records it contained have taken on near-mythical status, history and archaeology show that other ancient collections have existed over time... but have all of them been recovered? This week, go in search of the lost records of the ancient world, and whether secret archives containing knowledge about ancient history might still exist in locations like Egypt's Giza Plateau.

Some proponents of the idea point to one of Egypt's most famous monuments - the enigmatic Sphinx - as being the source of speculations about a lost "Hall of Records"... but what does archaeology have to say about this possibility? We look at the science, as well as the speculation, as we go in search of the lost records of the ancient world on this week's edition of The Micah Hanks Program.

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The Ghost Rockets: Sweden's UFO Files | MHP 03.08.21. Mar 09, 2021

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During the summer of 1946, one year before "flying saucers" began making headlines in America, a wave of sightings of strange "ghost rockets" were reported over Sweden and other Scandinavian countries. The reports resulted in an official inquiry by the Swedish military, and the cause behind the sightings remains unsolved to this day.

Joining us to discuss the ghost rockets mystery and UFO research in Sweden is Clas Svahn, a journalist and contributor to numerous publications around the world related to the history of UFOs. Svahn shares some of the most unusual ghost rockets incidents, which included their strange appearances - and disappearances - as multiple witnesses observed the objects crashing into lakes.

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UAP in the UK: The MoD's UFO Files Mar 03, 2021

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In the summer of 1947, "flying saucers" became all the rage in the United States... but unexplained encounters with strange, unidentified aerial phenomena were nothing new in other parts of the world; especially in the United Kingdom. Years before his wartime service as Prime Minister, Winston Churchill had taken interest in reports of unusual "Scareships" appearing in British skies, representing what might have been the British government's earliest involvement with UFO investigations.

Joining us this week for a deep-dive into the history of the British government's involvement with UFOs is Nick Pope, who worked the UFO desk at the Ministry of Defence for several years. He has since continued to advocate for the study of mysterious aerial phenomena, and efforts toward determining their possible origins and any risks they might present to National Security. Nick Pope shares his own historical research into Britain's involvement with the UFO question, which includes Foo Fighter investigations, Britain's "Flying Saucer Working Party," and his own investigations during his time at the MoD.

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The Brown Mountain Lights: A Historical Inquiry | MHP 02.22.21. Feb 23, 2021

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North Carolina legends tell that for decades - and perhaps centuries - residents around the vicinity of Morganton and nearby Appalachian mountain communities have observed strange lights hovering over the mountains. Known as the Brown Mountain Lights and named after the long, flat ridgeline made famous by their appearances, many have sought answers to their strange, almost ghostly appearance.

This week, we go in search of what answers history can tell us about these long-mysterious mountain lights, as we commemorate the life of one researcher who spent countless answers in pursuit of spotting and photographing them. Could an explanation for the famous Brown Mountain Lights be on the horizon? We explore answers to the mystery this week on The Micah Hanks Program.

This episode of the podcast is dedicated to the memory of Robert Ashmore, who put in many hours over the years in search of these mysterious atmospheric lights; he will be greatly missed.

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UFO Physical Evidence: Angel Hair and Mystery Metals | MHP 02.15.21. Feb 17, 2021

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It is the long-sought prize of every serious UFO investigator: physical evidence left behind by a UFO. For decades, reports involving physical substances produced by various kinds of aerial phenomena have existed, and yet no verifiable traces of UFO physical evidence have ever been recovered from observations or alleged landing sites that might offer conclusive proof of their existence.

With recent headlines claiming that the U.S. government "admits" it has tested UFO crash materials, we cast a skeptical eye toward the claims, and examine other instances where UFO physical evidence and other materials might have been produced in association with incidents from over the years.

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Cowboys and Monsters: The Lost Thunderbird Photo Mystery | MHP 02.08.21. Feb 10, 2021

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On April 26, 1890, an Arizona newspaper called the Tombstone Epitaph carried a very unusual headline. "Found in the Desert: A Strange Winged Monster Found and Killed on the Huachuca Desert" had been the sensational headline, which introduced the story of a group of cowboys who shot and killed something monstrous in rural Arizona.

Or so the legend goes, at least. For years, researchers have looked in vain for the newspaper article, as well as an alleged photograph which was said to have accompanied it that actually depicted the monster nailed to a barn. While some skeptics concluded that the alleged story had never appeared in the Epitaph, this week we explore the work of one late chronicler of the unusual, Mark Chorvinski, who decided to determine the story's origins once and for all... and attempt to track down the fabled "lost Thunderbird photo."

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The UFO Data: Marler and Rodeghier on the Record | MHP 02.01.21. Feb 03, 2021

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For decades, many scientists and laymen alike have sought answers to the longstanding mystery of UFOs. While much headway has been made, scientific investigation of this phenomenon has yet to gain mainstream acceptance; but what does the data from collected reports say about the legitimacy of UFOs, and whether there is merit to their study?

Joining us to discuss this are Mark Rodeghier, Ph.D. and David Marler. Rodeghier is President and Scientific Director of the J. Allen Hynek Center for UFO Studies. He has a B.S. in astrophysics from Indiana University, which he obtained in 1975, and an M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) in sociology. David Marler is an independent UFO researcher best known for his investigations regarding large triangle aircraft seen over the years. Marler and Rodeghier join us to discuss a new UFO data digitization project they are undertaking, in addition to their many investigations from over the years.

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Extraterrestrial: Avi Loeb on Oumuamua and Alien Life | MHP 01.26.21. Jan 26, 2021

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If alien life were ever to visit our planet, or even just our solar system, what might it look like? What form would it take, and what would be their reasons for coming here? More importantly, would we even recognize them, or realize they had been here at all?

According to NASA, "The first known interstellar object to visit our solar system, 1I/2017 U1 'Oumuamua, was discovered Oct. 19, 2017 by the University of Hawaii's Pan-STARRS1 telescope." Although the mysterious object was originally thought to be a comet, "observations revealed no signs of cometary activity after it slingshotted past the Sun on Sept. 9, 2017 at a blistering speed of 196,000 miles per hour."

Most astronomers still believe that Oumuamua was either an asteroid, a comet, or some similar space object… albeit a strange one. However, a few scientists have been willing to come forward with more exotic ideas. Joining us to discuss this possibility is Avi Loeb, a Harvard University astronomer and author of the new book Extraterrestrial: The First Sign of Intelligent Life Beyond Earth.

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