Space News / Exploring Crop Circles

Hosted byGeorge Noory

Space News / Exploring Crop Circles

About the show

In the first half, on the anniversary of the first American spacewalk, space historian Robert Zimmerman highlighted pivotal moments and challenges that shaped NASA's journey to the moon, as well as shared updates on current space missions. Speaking of America's intense competition with the Soviet Union, he noted how the Soviets' early spacewalk spurred NASA to adapt quickly, referencing Ed White's historic Gemini 4 spacewalk, which was improvised on short notice to demonstrate U.S. capability. Zimmerman also reflected on the tragic Apollo 1 fire that claimed the lives of three astronauts, including Ed White. He also touched on Apollo 13's near-disaster, praising the contingency plans that saved the crew.

Zimmerman detailed the contrasting missions of Mars rovers Curiosity and Perseverance. Curiosity, active for over a dozen years, is navigating the geologically rich foothills of Mount Sharp, studying Mars' history through its layered terrain. Perseverance, meanwhile, landed in Jezero Crater five years ago, collecting samples intended for future return to Earth —a plan currently stalled due to NASA's canceled retrieval mission. He also reported on Mars' abundant near-surface ice, comparing it to Antarctica, and noted SpaceX's plans to land Starship in ice-rich northern plains to utilize this resource.

Comparing SpaceX's Starship development with Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket, he said SpaceX "is actually pulling NASA along" with ambitions for Mars and lunar facilities. Meanwhile, Blue Origin suffered a major explosion during a static fire test, causing significant launchpad damage. Zimmerman sees this setback as a potential "silver lining" for Blue Origin to restructure and improve. Further, he pointed out SpaceX's financial strength, with $12 billion annual revenue and a forthcoming $75 billion IPO, positioning it to lead future space ventures.

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In the latter half, researcher and author Simeon Hein discussed his extensive exploration of crop formations and their enigmatic origins. His interest began in 1996 through remote viewing exercises at the Farsight Institute, which led him to investigate crop circles firsthand in Wiltshire, UK. Hein challenged the binary view that crop circles are either entirely human-made or wholly alien, stating, "Both sides are wrong in my view. It's somewhere in the middle." Recounting conversations with human circle makers who see themselves as "natural magicians," he reported that they sometimes have engaged with an unknown energy that manifests electromagnetic anomalies within the formations.

He also recalled historical and global instances of crop circles, including documented cases linked to UFO sightings and even animal mutilations, such as a 1967 case. He confirmed that crop circles still occur but are less frequent than in the 1990s, with Wiltshire once hosting over 100 annually. Hein also described anomalous or paranormal phenomena associated with crop circles, including ball lightning, orbs, and in one case "small black triangles" hovering over a formation. Regarding scientific verification, Hein admits no definitive litmus test exists to distinguish human from non-human crop circles, despite initial hopes that electrostatic measurements would suffice.

Joining the conversation from the U.K., Matt Williams, a former UFO researcher turned circle maker, explained his motivation to infiltrate the secretive crop circle community: "I decided to go make a few crop circles myself, just to see how hard it was," ultimately discovering that many simple circles that were man-made still had mystifying qualities. Williams emphasized the complex relationship between human creation of the circles and paranormal experiences. There were eerie incidents during circle-making, he said, such as time slips, psychic interactions, and an incident when three balls of light suddenly appeared at the corners of the field, prompting his team to flee.

News segment guests: Howard Bloom, Mish Shedlock

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