The Why Files: Operation Podcast

World War 2 has countless stories of bravery, sacrifice, camaraderie, and heroism. But the war also has a lot of mysteries. Many of them still unsolved. Like the legend of the Phantom Fortress. A B-17 bomber that returned from a mission with no crew aboard; and somehow landed itself. Let's find out why. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thewhyfiles/support Learn mor...

On Mel Waters' property in the Manastash Ridge, west of Ellensburg, Washington, there is a hole in the ground that looks like a well -- but it's not a well. Like the owners of the property before him, Mel used the hole as a trash dump. His neighbors used it too. Garbage, broken appliances, old tires, everything went in the hole. After a while, Mel started to wonder: why doesn't it fill up? Then he...

The Dark Watchers: Silent Guardians of the Pines The Santa Lucia mountain range runs from Monterey and down the coast of California. For hundreds of years, stories have been told about entities that keep watch over the mountains. Sometimes seen out of the corner of the eye, always from a distance. Stare too long and they vanish. If you're ever hiking the wilderness of Big Sur and feel like you're...

On March 16, 1957, at 8 o'clock in the morning, a 300 ft long spacecraft landed in a field in Alexandria Virginia. Two local police officers arrived on the scene. The door of the craft slowly opened. The officers drew their guns, not sure what to expect. To their surprise, out walked a normal-looking guy. He smiled at the stunned officers and actually waved hello. Before the policemen could say a...

In 12th century England, two children were found lost in a forest. They spoke only gibberish, wore strange clothing and had bright green skin. When the children finally learned to speak English, they described where they were from. And that's why, after almost 1,000 years, people still talk about The Green Children of Woolpit.   In 1828, a teenage boy was shuffling through a public square in Nurem...

In the past year or so, three internet mysteries popped up that really got my attention. They may seem very different, but trust me, they're connected.  The first one is about a girl who found a door in the basement of her AirBnB. She opened it and inside was an abandoned shopping mall.   The second story is about Javier aka Unico Sobreviviente, who woke up in a hospital in the year 2027, in an al...

The Moon is a Hollow Spaceship | Who Built it and Why?   Despite it being humanity's constant companion through all of recorded time, the moon is still a mystery.   Science hasn't been able to explain how the moon was formed, its unusual orbit, its distance from us, its density, its composition, its structure. These are all still questions.   There are theories about the moon that solve some of th...

Vatican City is an inspirational place. You don't need to be Catholic or even religious to appreciate the architecture, art, and the city's historical significance. But there is a place within the Vatican that's rarely seen. Hidden beneath the city is an underground fortress. Inaccessible to the public and protected by armed guards and state-of-the-art security. The Secret Apostolic Archives. With...

THE BLACK KNIGHT SATELLITE In 1957, the Soviet Union launched Sputnik 1. It was the first satellite in Earth's orbit. Or was it? For over a hundred years, an object has been seen, heard and *photographed* by people all around the world. This object became known as the Black Knight Satellite. The signals coming from the Black Knight Satellite have been decoded. And if the translation is correct, it...

Imagine you wake up one morning and notice everything around you is just a tiny bit different.   Maybe you're in the same house, but furniture is slightly out of place. Your favorite coffee mug is there, but it has a crack you don't remember. You could have sworn your coffee maker was black, but this one is chrome.   Just as you think you're going crazy, you feel a strange tingling sensation; and...

OPERATION: HIGHJUMP   Operation Highjump commenced in August 1946. It was the largest, most heavily armed naval task force ever sent to Antarctica.  Leading the mission was Admiral Richard E Byrd, one of the most famous naval officers in history.   The official purpose for the expedition was scientific research and military training. But that was just a cover story. Operation Highjump had other go...

MYSTERY OF THE CIRCLEVILLE LETTERS We all keep secrets. For most of us, these are nothing more than minor embarrassing details about ourselves. But some of us have dark secrets which, if discovered, could destroy lives. For years, the residents of Circleville, Ohio, received bizarre, threatening letters; from someone who somehow knew every salacious detail of their personal lives. The letters cost...

SOUNDS FROM THE HOLE TO HELL   In 1989, Dr. Dimitry Azacov and a group of scientists were working on a borehole drilling project in Siberia.  When the drill reached 14.4 kilometers, or 9 miles deep, the drill bit started rotating wildly. It had somehow broken through solid rock and into a hollow area under the earth's crust. This cavity wasn't supposed to be there.   When the drill returned to the...

PROOF THAT EVERYTHING - INCLUDING GOD - IS A SIMULATION   Is this reality? Well, we're experiencing ... something right now so maybe the better question is: *what* is reality?   Could everything we see, everything we experience, everything that exists in our entire universe -- be artificial?    Supporters of Simulation Theory believe that not only is it *possible* that we're living in a simulation...

THE BATTLE OF LOS ANGELES   On February 25, 1942, at about 2:30 in the morning, the people of Los Angeles were jolted awake by the sound of air-raid sirens.   The city was ordered to blackout and prepare for an attack.   Searchlights sprang to life, frantically scanning the sky above the city for enemy aircraft. Finally, the lights converged on a single object.  As frightened citizens stepped on t...

CHASING THE IMMORTAL COUNT   The Count of Saint Germain has been called a prophet, a sorcerer, and an immortal.  He's been spotted all over the world for a thousand years. And every time he's seen, he looks exactly the same age.   The Count of Saint Germain advised Kings, Queens and Emperors. He was present at every significant event in European history. And even was an important contributor to Am...

Here's a philosophical question for you. If a color doesn't have a name, can we still see it?   Many years ago, the human eye evolved to give us the ability to see about a million colors.   That's a lot.   Then how come, until very recently, nobody saw or even heard of the color blue?   Well, it's because blue just -- didn't exist yet.   Let's find out why. --- Support this podcast: https://podcas...

MYSTERIES OF MOUNT SHASTA   There is no other place on earth steeped in more mystery than Mount Shasta.   Aliens, ghosts, underground bases and interdimensional portals. Check.   Lost cities, strange disappearances, bigfoot, gods and demons. Check.   Atlantis, Lemuria, reptilian humanoids and giants.   Mount Shasta has it all.   Let's find out why. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spot...

What do Ponce De Leon, Alexander The Great and Jason Giambi all have in common?    Superstitions.   What are superstitions? Why do we believe them?   Although there are a lot of weird superstitions out there, there may be psychological benefits to believing them.   Let's find out why. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thewhyfiles/support Learn more about your ad cho...

WE'RE DUE FOR ANOTHER CARRINGTON EVENT  On September 1, 1859, astronomer Richard Carrington was observing a huge sunspot. Suddenly, a flash of intense white light burst from the sun's surface.  He had become the first eye-witness of a major Coronal Mass Ejection or CME. And it was headed straight for earth.  Seventeen hours later, the night sky in North America lit up like the day. Aurora Borealis...

What if all of our online existence is fake?   You, me, everyone; we're living in a real-life Matrix. Designed to distract us from the truth: that we're just drones in a digital ant-hill. We live, work and die so that the wealthy and powerful can grow more wealthy and powerful.   This is called the Dead Internet Theory. And there's compelling evidence that it's real.   Let's find out why. --- Supp...

THE MAN WHO SAW ALIEN BASES ON THE MOON   Ingo Swann claimed to be a psychic who was employed by the CIA to remote-view the dark side of the moon. Specifically to look for an alien presence.  It sounded like science fiction.   But in 2006, when the CIA started releasing documents on the Stargate Project, Swann's participation in the program was confirmed.  When Swann was asked about the existence...

LEGEND OF THE MOON-EYED PEOPLE   Across the Southern Appalachian mountains, from Georgia up through North Carolina, hundreds of unusual stone structures have been discovered.   Some date back hundreds of years. Some date back thousands.   Archaeologists aren't sure who created these monuments. But the Cherokee people claim they know exactly who built them.   The Cherokee say the structures were bu...

COMPUTER PREDICTS WORLD WILL END IN 2040   In 1704, using a series of calculations, Isaac Newton predicted the world would end sometime around the year 2060.   Almost 300 years later, in 1973, a computer at MIT made the prediction that life as we know it will end around the year 2040.   It also predicted that some of the first signs would be seen in the year 2020.   Some of its predictions have co...

THE COMPUTER THAT PROVED TIME TRAVEL | THE DODLESTON MESSAGES   In December 1984, Ken Webster, a high-school teacher, was living with his friend Nic and girlfriend Debbie in the small village of Dodleston. One evening, the three were walking home from the local pub when they saw a pulsing green light emanating from their cottage windows.   When they got inside, they saw something that terrified th...