NASA is Gearing Up for the First Rocket Launch from Another Planet
This week, we examine recent tests being carried out by NASA are paving the way for the historic first rocket launch from Mars.
Micah Hanks
Micah Hanks is creator, co-founder, and Editor-in-Chief of The Debrief. He covers science, defense, and technology in his writing and podcasts, and you can find him at micahhanks.com and on X @MicahHanks.
Researchers Create “Unnatural” Amino Acids Unlike Anything Found in Nature
"Unnatural" amino acids unlike anything that occurs in nature have been created by a team of researchers in a new research breakthrough.
Strange Metamaterial with “Fourth Dimensional” Properties Leads to Breakthrough in Energy Manipulation
Scientists have engineered a new metamaterial possessing “fourth dimensional” properties, allowing the novel control of energy waves.
The Congressional Hearing on Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena
In this installment of The Micah Hanks Program, we provide an analysis of last week’s hearing and the explosive statements the former military witnesses provided under oath to members of Congress.
U.S. Law of War Gets a Reboot as the Pentagon Updates Its Handbook on Law in Military Operations
The Department of Defense announced this week that it has issued an update to its official manual that governs the implementation of law in military operations.
Director of Pentagon’s UAP Investigations Challenges Claims Made in Recent UAP Hearing
The Pentagon's chief scientist involved in the investigation of unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP) fired back at assertions made during a Congressional hearing this week that his Office was not being fully transparent with its findings.
The Congressional Hearing on UAP: What We Learned From Yesterday’s Testimony
This week's Intelligence Brief newsletter looks at the key takeaways from the latest in a recent series of Congressional hearings on unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP).
Crashes, Casualties, and Cover-Ups: Assessing the UAP Whistleblower Claims
This week, we take a balanced look at historical cases involving UAP crashes, deaths related to UAP incidents, and other details in the controversial claims made by UAP whistleblower David Grusch.
Lockheed Martin to Build Experimental Nuclear Propulsion System for Joint DARPA and NASA Collaboration
DARPA and NASA have selected Lockheed Martin to help build a nuclear propulsion rocket capable of taking humans to Mars for future missions.
Congressman Provides Account of Military UAP Image That He Says Matches No “Human Capability”
Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz says he was recently shown a UAP image by USAF personnel that he was “not able to attach to any human capability.”
Whistleblowers Testify Under Oath Regarding “Craft of Non-Human Origin” and Military Encounters with UAP
Congress has received testimony from three former officials about UAP encounters and alleged U.S. retrievals of craft of non-human origin.
Mystery Surrounds Deaths of Three Marines Found Near Camp Lejeune
The deaths of three U.S. Marine lance corporals found near Camp Lejeune remains unclear two days after their bodies were first discovered.
Archaeology in Space? New Science of Planetary Geoarchaeology Focuses on Preservation of Space Heritage
A newly proposed scientific subfield involving archaeology in space could help humans preserve the record of exploration on the Moon and Mars.
Alien “Super-Earth” Discovery Reveals Existence of Large Planet 120 Light Years Away
The discovery of a newfound alien “super-Earth” observed orbiting a distant red dwarf star has been reported by an international team of astronomers.
National Security Subcommittee Hearing on UAP: Here’s What to Expect Next Week
This week, we look at the latest news in advance of next week’s National Security Subcommittee Hearing on UAP.
The Senate’s Fight for UAP Transparency
This week on The Micah Hanks Program, we look at what has been presented in draft language as “The UAP Disclosure Act of 2023."
Pentagon Official Warns of Potential Threat From Extraterrestrial “Technical Surprise” as UAP Hearing Approaches
The Pentagon’s chief UAP investigator has warned about the potetial of extraterrestrial "technical surprise” in advance of a Congressional hearing on UAP.
Could the Equivalence Principle be Wrong? New Measurements Put Einstein’s Theory of Relativity to the Test
Researchers have used a half century of lunar ranging data to test the equivalence principle, one of the core principles of modern physics. Here's what they found.
Defying All Odds, Woman Reports Being Struck by Falling Space Rock Outside Her Home
A French woman says she was struck earlier this month by a falling space object in an incident that occurred outside her home in the village of Alsace, Eastern France.
Northrop Grumman’s B-2 Spirit Stealth Bomber Celebrates Three Decades of Air Dominance
Northrop Grumman’s B-2 Spirit, the U.S. Air Force’s multi-role bomber and one of the most iconic military aircraft in modern history, celebrates three decades in service today.
Mysterious Vortex Rings Could Hold the Key to Helping Make Fusion Energy Viable, New Research Reveals
Nuclear fusion could be made more efficient with help from a new model that improves our understanding of mysterious vortex rings.
The ‘UAP Disclosure Act of 2023’: What We Know About Chuck Schumer and the Senate’s New Push for UAP Transparency
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is leading a new effort to establish a commission to declassify United States government documents and other materials related to unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP).
Life on Mars? Discovery at Jezero Crater Reveals Promising Evidence for Organic Molecules
NASA’s Perseverance rover has detected evidence that may point to the presence of organic molecules on Mars, a discovery that helps strengthen the possibility that life could have once existed there.
James Webb Space Telescope Celebrates First Year With New Stunning Cosmic Imagery
This week, we’ll be looking at the James Webb Space Telescope's recent achievements as it reached one year since heading into orbit.
Unexplained Magnetic Anomaly on the Moon Prompts NASA Investigation with Next-Generation Plasma Spectrometer
A plasma spectrometer has been delivered to NASA to assist the agency’s investigations into a mysterious area on the Moon that is the location of an unexplained magnetic anomaly.
Soviet USO Encounters: The Mysterious “Quackers”
This week, we look at Soviet USO encounters, and the mysterious “Quackers” encountered by Soviet submarine crews during the Cold War.
North Korea Accuses U.S. of Surveillance Flights, Threatens to Shoot Down Spy Planes in Its Airspace
North Korea issued a warning this week that U.S. spy planes detected within its airspace may be shot down amidst accusations that American drones and other aircraft are conducting surveillance.
Photonic Time Crystal Discovery Could Have “Profound Implications” for Optics, Lead to New Disruptive Tech
“We don’t yet understand exactly how it happens.” A breakthrough with photonic time crystals in the near-visible spectrum could lead to new approaches in optics and the creation of novel disruptive technologies.
Buried on the Far Side of the Moon, the Detection of a Mysterious Heat-Emitting Object Leads to an Unexpected Discovery
The detection of a large, heat-emitting mass buried beneath the far side of the Moon suggests it may have a history more like our planet than scientists once realized.
DARPA’S New SHIELD Program Plans to Purge Your Blood of Pathogens, Roomba-Style
This week's Intelligence Brief examines DARPA's new SHIELD program, which aims to protect warfighters against infections from pathogens.
Italy’s Fascist UFO Files
This week, we examine the strange history of Italy’s Fascist UFO files, and critically examine their relationship to the modern UFO crash wreckage retrieval debate on The Micah Hanks Program.
Threads Picks Up Millions of Users Within Hours of Launch as Meta’s New Alternative to Twitter
In the latest blow dealt in a battle between social media giants, Meta Platforms officially launched its new Threads app on Wednesday, amassing millions of followers within just a few hours.
Controlling Points of Darkness with Metasurfaces Could Enable New Covert Detection Technologies, Harvard Team Says
Harvard researchers say they have succeeded in developing a method of controlling points of darkness known as optical singularities with the help of metasurfaces.
Google’s Sycamore Quantum Processor May Have Just Settled Quantum Supremacy Debate
Google says its Sycamore quantum processor can now make instant calculations that would require the fastest conventional computers currently in existence almost half a century to complete.
Controversial Study Reveals Humankind’s Earliest Ancestors Coexisted with Dinosaurs Prior to Ancient Mass Extinction
The earliest mammalian ancestors of humans co-existed with dinosaurs prior to their mass extinction, new research reveals.
Superconductivity Breakthrough Reveals Never-Before-Seen Quantum Vortex Phenomenon
An international team of researchers says they have discovered a new variety of quantum vortexes within superconductors, pointing to a previously unknown circulatory phenomenon.
“I don’t really understand why they can do it.” The Godfather of AI Returns With a Warning
The “Godfather of AI” has returned to offer more words of caution about the potential issues humankind could face in the future with AI.
Giant UFOs on Radar
This week, Robert Powell, an executive board member of the Scientific Coalition for UAP Studies, joins us to discuss large UAP and their detection on radar in a famous 2008 incident.
Mysterious Force Behind Cosmic Acceleration To Be Explored by New Joint NASA and ESA Effort
NASA and the ESA will team up to unravel the mysteries of dark energy and cosmic acceleration with the Roman and Euclid space telescopes.
Webb Space Telescope Makes Breakthrough Detection of Compound “Crucial” to Formation of Life
A new carbon compound has been detected in space for the first time using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope, according to an international team of researchers.
The Pancosmorio Theory: New Research Reveals Factors That Could Complicate Long-term Survival in Space
Long-term survival of human explorers in deep space may be harder to achieve than once thought, according to new research.
Space Thruster Tiles, Self-Healing Squid-like Stuff, and Pig Hearts: DoD Event Exhibits Pentagon’s Unconventional Tech
The Pentagon recently showcased some of its most unconventional innovations during an event hosted by the DoD's ManTech program.
The Nuclear Connection: UAP and the Atomic Warfare Complex
Throughout the early years of the Cold War, recurrent appearances of unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP) were documented near several radioactive materials production plants, atomic weapons assembly facilities, and atomic weapons stockpile sites in the United States
The Search for Titan: Knocking Sounds, a Debris Field, and Breaking Developments in the Rescue Effort
Welcome to this week’s installment of The Intelligence Brief… as the search for a missing submersible has captured...
Discovery of “Debris Field” Announced by U.S. Coast Guard in Search for Missing Submersible
A debris field has reportedly been discovered by searchers involved in the effort to recover a missing submersible that was lost on Sunday near the vicinity of the Titanic wreckage.
Anomalous Phenomenon Observed in Quantum Bunching Effect “Utterly Contradicts Common Knowledge”
An anomalous bunching effect appears to contradict our accepted understanding of the properties of photons, according to a new paper.
MQ-9 Reaper Completes Harrowing Mission First That Proves It Can Be Flown From Anywhere in the World
The USAF says it has successfully landed an MQ-9 in terrain that proves the UAV can be launched from virtually anywhere in the world.
TRAPPIST-1 Could Have Lower Number of Habitable Planets, New Webb Data Suggests
New data from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) suggests an exoplanet with once-promising potential for life shows no signs of having a thick atmosphere.
Rescue Teams Race Against Time in Search for Missing Submersible Near Titanic Wreck
The search for a submersible craft with five people aboard remains underway after disappearing near the wreckage of the famous Titanic.
Theoretical Breakthrough Could Finally Solve the Mystery of Invisible Dark Matter
A team of Canadian researchers says that the lack of clumpiness in the structure of the universe could help to shed new light on the composition of dark matter.