Unknown Origin

Bill Van Nort
  • 5.0 (1)
  • Documentary

Strange encounters. Bigger questions. Unknown Origin is a storytelling podcast about UFOs, UAP, USOs, alien encounters, and the possibility that humanity is not alone. Join Bill Van Nort for extraordinary accounts from around the world—and the human questions inside them. How would we recognize another intelligence? What would contact do to our lives, our beliefs, and our civilization? Expect wonder, unsettling stories, deep reflection, and room for uncertainty. We distinguish eyewitness reports, documented evidence, and speculation without losing sight of the people behind the accounts. Believers, skeptics, and the undecided are welcome. Follow the show, explore, and tell us what stays with you. Watch the cinematic episodes: https://www.youtube.com/@UnknownOriginPodcast Stories, questions, and sponsorship inquiries: unknownorigin@epicbmedia.com

Episodes

  1. Oct 9

    After the Encounter: How Do You Return to an Ordinary Life?

    Watch the full filmFree transcript and complete creditsGet free Field Notes What happens after a reported UFO encounter—when the questions stop, the reporters leave, and you still have a life to live? In this cinematic episode of Unknown Origin, Bill follows Charles Hickson and Calvin Parker beyond the 1973 Pascagoula account, then turns to Betty and Barney Hill. Work, relationships, public attention, memory, and the decision to speak become part of a story that lasts much longer than one extraordinary night. These are reported encounters, explored through early records and later recollections. The film distinguishes testimony, interpretation, and what can be established independently. Subscribe for immersive stories about UFOs, UAP, and the bigger questions they leave us with. What would be hardest to return to after an experience you couldn't explain? WATCH & LISTENFull film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=go-tb8zuvZ8Podcast: https://unknownorigin.transistor.fm/Free Field Notes: https://unknown-origin.kit.com/profileSupport the show: https://www.patreon.com/UnknownOriginPodcast SOURCES TO EXPLORESheriff-interview excerpts reproduced by NICAP:https://www.nicap.org/reports/731011pascagoula_hicksontape.htmUniversity of Southern Mississippi: Hickson oral history:https://www.lib.usm.edu/spcol/exhibitions/item_of_the_month/iotm_june_2022.htmlCalvin Parker's 2018 account, WLOX:https://www.wlox.com/story/38768369/ms-man-writes-book-about-his-1970s-alien-abduction/Parker's later life, Country Roads:https://countryroadsmagazine.com/art-and-culture/people-places/the-pascagoula-abduction/Walter Webb's October 1961 Hill report:https://www.nicap.org/reports/610919hill_report1.pdfUniversity of New Hampshire: the Hill collection:https://magazine.unh.edu/issue/spring-summer-2021/an-extraterrestrial-special-collection/Hypnosis and memory: Orne et al. (1996):https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8885533/ PRODUCTION & IMAGE CONTEXTCreated and narrated by Bill Van Nort. An EpicB Media production.Narration uses Bill's authorized synthetic voice. AI-assisted dramatized scenes and a consistent synthetic cast illustrate the accounts; they are not historical footage or evidence of the reported encounters. Scientific visualizations and observatory footage provide illustrative context. No endorsement by source organizations is implied. Full references and media credits appear in the film's end credits. Selected picture credits: ESO/C. Malin (christophmalin.com); G. Hüdepohl (atacamaphoto.com)/ESO; NASA/ESA/M. Kornmesser (CC BY 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Footage edited, reframed, retimed; source audio excluded. ESO sources: https://www.eso.org/public/videos/uhd-cm-alma-pan2/ and https://www.eso.org/public/videos/lasilla-drone-2019/ and https://www.eso.org/public/videos/earth_2015_4k/NASA Johnson Space Center Earth footage; NASA Goddard Space Flight Center/Conceptual Image Lab. Cosmic Cliffs: NASA Universe of Learning/STScI. Galaxy traverse: F. Summers/G. Bacon (STScI); simulation C. Hummels/P. Hopkins (Caltech), A. Wetzel (UC Davis). Orion: NASA, ESA, STScI, Caltech/IPAC; acknowledgments A. Fujii/R. Gendler. Full contributor lists in the end credits. #UnknownOrigin #Pascagoula #UFO (00:00) - Opening (00:18) - The room after the questions (03:22) - An ordinary evening (05:54) - What the men reported (09:14) - The decision to tell someone (12:15) - The questions and the recording (15:23) - The next working day (18:32) - A story enters public life (21:19) - The months afterward (24:13) - Charles Hickson keeps speaking (27:24) - Musical break (28:09) - Calvin and Waynett (31:35) - Choosing to tell the story (34:45) - Betty and Barney Hill (38:00) - The account changes over time (40:49) - Lives beyond the encounter (43:02) - A return to Pascagoula (45:52) - What he wanted remembered (49:05) - Credits and theme ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

  2. Oct 4

    USOs and Underwater UFOs: Something Under the Water

    USOs, underwater UFOs, and the ocean encounters that leave us standing over a mystery. In Something Under the Water, Bill Van Nort follows the Shag Harbour search, strange luminous seas, Navy UAP testimony, and the limits of what we can see beneath the surface. From the 1967 Canadian records to David Fravor's account, Alexandro Wiggins's testimony, Aguadilla's disputed interpretation, the Bloop, hydrothermal vents, and the hidden oceans of Enceladus and Europa: these stories do not all have the same explanation. Reported encounters, natural phenomena, scientific discoveries, and hypothetical scenes are clearly distinguished. None establishes extraterrestrial vehicles in Earth's oceans. Which would change your mind more: an eyewitness account, continuous recordings from independent instruments, or a physical sample? Tell me why in the comments. Subscribe for more Unknown Origin. Episode 003. Published after Episode 004; both are standalone stories. LISTEN & EXPLORE https://unknownorigin.transistor.fm/episodes/usos-and-underwater-ufos-something-under-the-water FREE FIELD NOTES NEWSLETTER https://unknown-origin.kit.com/profile SUPPORT UNKNOWN ORIGIN https://www.patreon.com/UnknownOriginPodcast The $5/month Explorer membership supports production updates and member polls. Full episodes remain free. SUBTITLES & FREE READING TRANSCRIPTS English captions plus Spanish, Portuguese (Brazil), German, French, Japanese, Hindi, Indonesian, Arabic, and Traditional Chinese: select CC / Settings. Free transcript ZIP and listener source guide: https://www.patreon.com/UnknownOriginPodcast/posts/something-under-171428544 Translations received local-model review and editorial spot checks, not native-human certification. Corrections welcome. SELECTED SOURCES Canadian Forces telex, October 5, 1967: https://data2.collectionscanada.gc.ca/e/e110/e002749390.jpg DND memorandum, October 6, 1967: https://data2.collectionscanada.gc.ca/e/e110/e002749391.jpg Pringle's historical HMS Vulture letter: https://www.eliotsofporteliot.com/transcriptions/misc/jep-phenomenon.html Milky-sea observations and satellite comparison: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9303900/ Official Aguadilla recording: https://www.dvidshub.net/video/944204/puerto-rico-objects NOAA Marianas hydrothermal-vent footage: https://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/multimedia/video-playlist-ex1605-vents/ EVIDENCE & PRODUCTION Archival records, actual footage, scientific visualizations, and AI reconstructions are identified. Illustrations are not evidence of alien contact. Narration uses Bill's authorized synthetic voice. 4K presentation includes upscaled source imagery. NOAA and NASA material does not imply institutional endorsement. The appearance of U.S. Department of War (DoW) visual information does not imply or constitute DoW endorsement. Milky-sea figures: Steven D. Miller (2022), CC BY 4.0; photographs credited to Coraline Bourdon and Leon Schommer, Ganesha crew. Figure 2 is a published, adjusted composite, not a raw photograph. Additional source and visual credits appear in the episode. Created and narrated by Bill Van Nort. EpicB Media LLC. Questions, corrections, and stories: unknownorigin@epicbmedia.com. Please keep private identifying details out of public comments. #USO #UFO #UnknownOrigin WATCH WITH THE FULL EPISODE PLAYLIST https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3HAlYXpSFY&list=PLUim3ToTZaE0 (00:00) - Unknown Origin — opening (00:18) - Before the boat could reach it (03:17) - The search at Shag Harbour (08:36) - The wheels beneath HMS Vulture (13:10) - The captain stopped the ship (18:22) - The white water beneath the Tic Tac (22:39) - Four objects and one departure (27:08) - Aguadilla: did it enter the sea? (32:09) - Midshow intermission (32:45) - The sea that stayed bright (37:13) - The Bloop: the sound without a body (41:40) - A map is not a watch (44:31) - Hydrothermal vents and unexpected life (49:08) - Enceladus and Europa: oceans beyond Earth (53:36) - If something really came up (57:15) - The place we lost it (01:01:01) - Credits ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

  3. Oct 3

    The Wow! Signal: What If We Only Hear Them Once?

    The Wow! signal lasted roughly 72 seconds in the record. Was it a natural event, interference—or something we still do not understand? What would it mean to hear another intelligence only once? In this cinematic 4K episode of Unknown Origin, Bill Van Nort follows the 1977 Big Ear observation into the search for extraterrestrial intelligence, a human-designed message transmitted from Mars, and the messages humanity has already sent into space. We explore what 6EQUJ5 actually records, why repeat observations matter, A Sign in Space, the Arecibo message, and Voyager's Golden Record. Then we ask a harder question: recognizing a signal might be only the beginning of understanding its sender. Download free transcripts: English + nine languages INTERNATIONAL ACCESS — Watch with subtitles in Español, Português (Brasil), Deutsch, Français, 日本語, हिन्दी, Bahasa Indonesia, العربية and 繁體中文. English narration is retained. Select your subtitle language in the YouTube player settings. Translations were created and reviewed with AI assistance and editorial spot checks; corrections: unknownorigin@epicbmedia.com. If you could send one image and one sound to an unknown intelligence, what would you choose? Tell me in the comments—and why. Subscribe for cinematic stories about UFOs, UAP, alien life, and the human questions behind the unknown. EPISODE 004 — What If We Only Hear Them Once?This standalone episode was released ahead of Episode 003. Episode 003, Something Under the Water, is now available at unknownorigin.transistor.fm. Both stories stand on their own. CHAPTERS00:00 Unknown Origin — opening theme00:18 The Wow! signal: a discovery noticed later05:50 Big Ear and the work of listening12:01 What 6EQUJ5 actually means19:08 Why didn't the signal repeat?26:28 A Sign in Space: a human message from Mars35:16 The Arecibo message and Voyager's Golden Record45:40 If we confirmed a signal, should we answer?54:16 Understanding the intelligence on the other side1:02:53 What the silence leaves us1:07:43 Show theme, sources and visual credits WATCH NEXTUFO Encounters: What Do They Want From Us? — Strieber, Lazar & Operation Pratohttps://youtu.be/OEn-gsSmfZYWould We Recognize Alien Contact? Four Strange UFO Encountershttps://youtu.be/RVGow2hjBa8 LISTEN / READ / CONNECTPodcast, episode notes and transcripts: https://unknownorigin.transistor.fm/Free Field Notes newsletter: https://unknown-origin.kit.com/profileSupport the show: https://www.patreon.com/UnknownOriginPodcastThe $5/month Explorer membership supports production updates and member polls. Full episodes remain free.Stories, corrections and sponsorships: unknownorigin@epicbmedia.com SOURCES & FURTHER READINGJerry Ehman's Wow! signal report: https://www.bigear.org/Wow30th/wow30th.htmWhat 6EQUJ5 means: https://bigear.org/6equj5.htm2025 archival reanalysis: https://arxiv.org/abs/2508.10657Repeating-source analysis: https://arxiv.org/abs/2206.08374Natural-origin hypothesis: https://arxiv.org/abs/2408.08513ESA's A Sign in Space account: https://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Images/2024/10/Alien_signal_decodedProject and decoding: https://asignin.space/Voyager Golden Record: https://science.nasa.gov/mission/voyager/golden-record-contents/ EVIDENCE & PRODUCTION NOTEThe Wow! signal is not established extraterrestrial communication. Proposed explanations, historical observations, personal belief, analogies and hypothetical contact scenarios are distinguished in the episode. A Sign in Space was designed by humans. The film combines identified archival material, scientific visualizations and labeled illustrative scenes. Generated visuals are not evidence of alien contact. Narration uses Bill's authorized synthetic voice. The 4K presentation includes native 4K motion, upscaled generated stills and archival imagery. Visual material credited on screen includes NASA/JPL-Caltech, NASA Goddard, ESA/STScI collaborators, ESO contributors under CC BY 4.0, and Big Ear/NAAPO material used with permission. Full item-level credits and research references accompany the episode notes. No institutional endorsement is implied. Original source-video soundtracks and Voyager recordings are not used. Original episode score produced with Suno; established Unknown Origin theme supplied by Bill. Created and narrated by Bill Van Nort. Published by EpicB Media LLC. #WowSignal #SETI #UnknownOrigin FULL ITEM-LEVEL CREDITS AND REFERENCESUNKNOWN ORIGINWhat If We Only Hear Them Once? Created and narrated by Bill Van Nort VISUAL SOURCES Earth, Apollo 17 (December 7, 1972). Image courtesy of the Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit, NASA Johnson Space Center.https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/30613 NASA galaxies — NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/Conceptual Image Lab. artist concept.https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/14950 Galaxy traverse — F. Summers, G. Bacon (STScI); Simulation: C. Hummels, P. Hopkins (CalTech), A. Wetzel(UC Davis). simulation visualization. https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/31025 Orion in visible light — NASA, ESA, F. Summers, G. Bacon, Z. Levay, J. DePasquale, L. Hustak, L.Frattare, M. Robberto, M. Gennaro (STScI), R. Hurt (Caltech/IPAC), M. Kornmesser (ESA); AcknowledgementA. Fujii, R. Gendler. 3D visualization based on observations. https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/30957 Earthlike exoplanet — NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center Conceptual Image Lab. artist concept.https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/20248 Icy exoplanet — NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center Conceptual Image Lab. artist concept.https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/20248 M13 Hubble image — NASA, ESA, and the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA); Acknowledgment: C. Bailyn (YaleUniversity), W. Lewin (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), A. Sarajedini (University of Florida), andW. van Altena (Yale University).https://science.nasa.gov/asset/hubble/hubble-acswfpc2-image-of-globular-cluster-m13/ Wow! signal printout — Big Ear Radio Observatory and North American AstroPhysical Observatory (NAAPO).Scan of a copy made after the event; preserved source, editorial crops.https://www.bigear.org/Wow30th/WowL.jpg Voyager Golden Record and cover — NASA/JPL-Caltech.https://science.nasa.gov/resource/voyager-golden-record/ VLT TrackingP. Horálek/ESOhttps://www.eso.org/public/videos/horalek-pao-2017-5/CC BY 4.0 VLT StargazersESO/C. Malin (christophmalin.com)https://www.eso.org/public/videos/uhd-cm-vlt2014-1/CC BY 4.0 ALMA PlateauESO/C. Malin (christophmalin.com)https://www.eso.org/public/videos/uhd-cm-alma-pan2/CC BY 4.0 La Silla AerialG. Hüdepohl (atacamaphoto.com)/ESOhttps://www.eso.org/public/videos/lasilla-drone-2019/CC BY 4.0 Big Ear AerialOhio State University Radio Observatory / NAAPOhttps://www.bigear.org/slideshow/JAHR/JAHR.htmUsed with permission Big Ear photographs, summer 1980 (01, 03, 08, 10, 11, 23, 26)James S. Arthur / Ohio State University Radio Observatory / NAAPOhttps://www.bigear.org/slideshow/JAHR/JAHR.htmUsed with permission Arecibo 2014 Raphael VinotRaphaël Vinothttps://www.flickr.com/photos/rafiot/14725838151/CC BY 2.0; https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/ ALMA AntennasI. Nakamura/ESOhttps://www.eso.org/public/videos/alma-array-uhd1/CC BY 4.0 Keck ObservatoryInternational Gemini Observatory/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/ T. Slovinskýhttps://noirlab.edu/public/images/6V7A4853-CC/CC BY 4.0 Gemini North NightInternational Gemini Observatory/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/P. Horálek (Institute of Physics in Opav...

  4. Sep 28

    UFO Encounters: What Do They Want From Us? — Strieber, Lazar & Operation Prato

    UFO encounters, alleged alien abduction, and the question behind “soul containers.” Explore Whitley Strieber's accounts, Bob Lazar's attributed claims, Dionisio Llanca, and Brazil's Operation Prato-era UAP records with Bill Van Nort. What do they want from us? A roadside repair in Argentina. Lights entering homes in Brazil. A face beside a bed. Unknown Origin follows the people inside unsettling alien visitation accounts—and asks what the sources actually establish about unfamiliar intelligence and the possibility of alien life. Which account stayed with you, and what evidence would change your interpretation? Leave your thoughts below. Believers, skeptics, and the undecided are welcome. Subscribe for cinematic UFO stories, UAP investigations, and bigger human questions. WATCH EPISODE 2 IN 4K https://youtu.be/OEn-gsSmfZY WATCH NEXT Would We Recognize Alien Contact? Four Strange UFO Encounters: https://youtu.be/RVGow2hjBa8 LISTEN / READ / SUPPORT Podcast: https://unknownorigin.transistor.fm/ Free Field Notes newsletter: https://unknown-origin.kit.com/profile Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/UnknownOriginPodcast Contact / sponsorships: unknownorigin@epicbmedia.com SOURCES & FURTHER READING Brazilian archive (ARX 0322): https://imagem.sian.an.gov.br/acervo/derivadas/br_dfanbsb_arx/0/0/0322/br_dfanbsb_arx_0_0_0322_d0001de0001.pdf Dionisio Llanca reporting: https://www.magicasruinas.com.ar/revistero/3/ovni-1973.htm Critical investigation: https://www.visionovni.com.ar/archivos/913 Strieber interview, Harvard CSWR: https://cswr.hds.harvard.edu/news/2024/03/07/audio-pop-apocalypse-aliens-eros-and-life-after-death-interview-whitley-strieber Strieber's cabin return: https://unknowncountry.com/whitleys-journal/after-28-years-i-return-to-the-cabin/ Transformation 2026: https://unknowncountry.com/book/transformation-2026/ Rogan / Lazar / Vendittelli interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lb_1d68vx-g CONTENT & VISUAL NOTE Discussion of frightening encounters, bodily intrusion, and reported medical effects. Visuals are non-graphic. Reported experiences do not establish extraterrestrial contact or soul harvesting. Realistic reconstructions and concept scenes are AI-generated and labeled; they are not original encounter footage. Archival documents and scientific visualizations are identified separately. Narration uses the host's authorized AI voice. Scientific visualization: NASA / NASA's Universe of Learning / STScI / Caltech-IPAC. No endorsement implied. Original visualization audio is not used. Host: Bill Van Nort | Publisher: EpicB Media LLC #UFO #UAP #AlienEncounters (00:00) - A UFO encounter: hiding in the thorns (02:49) - Dionisio Llanca: the roadside encounter (08:24) - Brazil UFO files: before the legend (14:45) - Two figures behind the light (19:43) - Colares-era accounts: lights inside homes (27:42) - UFO medical claims: what the doctor said (32:56) - An encounter without fear (37:54) - Operation Prato: the investigators' records (43:46) - Whitley Strieber: the face beside the bed (50:36) - Strieber's cabin and the visitors (56:17) - Humans as soul containers? (01:01:01) - Bob Lazar, John Lear & the source of the claim (01:06:40) - The shoes in his hand (01:10:37) - Alien life, uncertainty & wonder ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

  5. Sep 26

    Would We Recognize Alien Contact? Four Strange UFO Encounters

    Would we recognize contact with another intelligence—or spend the rest of our lives describing it with the wrong words? In the first episode of the relaunched Unknown Origin, Bill Van Nort follows four strange reported encounters across Italy, New Zealand, Australia, and Finland. Flowers and a stocking in Tuscany. A paddock flooded with green light. A room that other people cannot see. An encounter in the snow with a troubling aftermath. These stories open into bigger questions about communication, fear, compassion, faith, and what knowing we are not alone could do to an ordinary human life. These are reported experiences, not established encounters with extraterrestrials. We distinguish source records, witness accounts, later investigations, and philosophical speculation. Contains discussion of frightening experiences and reported illness. Watch the cinematic 4K edition: https://youtu.be/RVGow2hjBa8 Which encounter stayed with you—and what would you need to recognize contact? Join the conversation on YouTube or email unknownorigin@epicbmedia.com. Stories, questions, and sponsorship inquiries are welcome. Support Unknown Origin: join the $5/month Explorer membership for production updates and member polls. Full episodes remain free. https://www.patreon.com/UnknownOriginPodcast (00:00) - Before we have a name for it (03:49) - The flowers at Cennina (10:21) - What did they think we were saying? (15:57) - The paddock turned green (21:37) - The person inside the secret (27:04) - The light that kept up (32:10) - The room she couldn't leave (38:17) - Something in the snow (43:42) - Contact on whose terms? (49:21) - The evening after we know (55:50) - Who, or what, is God? (01:01:10) - The answer that wouldn't finish the story (01:07:13) - What we carry back SOURCES AND FURTHER READING Cennina, Italy: Sergio Conti, Flying Saucer Review, Vol. 18 No. 5 (1972), pp. 11–15; source guide: https://podcastufo.com/a-1954-landed-craft-and-humanoid-report-from-cennina-italy/ New Zealand: RNZAF file AIR 244/10/1, Vol. 1 (1959–1983); later journalistic investigation, Finding Mrs Moreland: https://interactives.stuff.co.nz/2018/03/finding-mrs-moreland/ Maureen Puddy, Australia: Keith Basterfield's three-part cold-case research, comparing official forms and later accounts: https://ufos-scientificresearch.blogspot.com/2012/10/cold-case-investigation-frankston-vic.html https://ufos-scientificresearch.blogspot.com/2012/10/cold-case-investigation-frankston-vic_4.html https://ufos-scientificresearch.blogspot.com/2012/10/cold-case-investigation-frankston-vic_880.html Imjärvi, Finland: Sven-Olof Fredrickson, Finnish Encounter in the Snow, Flying Saucer Review, Vol. 16 No. 4 (1970); Anders Liljegren, The Continuing Story of the Imjärvi Skiers—Part 1, Vol. 26 No. 3 (1980), pp. 15–17; later Swedish account: https://www.ufo.se/index.php?catid=88%3Averklighet&id=1991%3Amysteriet-i-imjaervi&option=com_content&view=article Records show what was reported; they do not establish extraterrestrial origins. Some sources are later reconstructions or translations, and discrepancies are discussed in the episode. Written and produced by Bill Van Nort. Narration uses an AI-generated version of the host's voice. © 2026 EpicB Media LLC. Read the episode transcript ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

  • 5 Episodes

About

Strange encounters. Bigger questions. Unknown Origin is a storytelling podcast about UFOs, UAP, USOs, alien encounters, and the possibility that humanity is not alone. Join Bill Van Nort for extraordinary accounts from around the world—and the human questions inside them. How would we recognize another intelligence? What would contact do to our lives, our beliefs, and our civilization? Expect wonder, unsettling stories, deep reflection, and room for uncertainty. We distinguish eyewitness reports, documented evidence, and speculation without losing sight of the people behind the accounts. Believers, skeptics, and the undecided are welcome. Follow the show, explore, and tell us what stays with you. Watch the cinematic episodes: https://www.youtube.com/@UnknownOriginPodcast Stories, questions, and sponsorship inquiries: unknownorigin@epicbmedia.com

Information

  • Creator
    Bill Van Nort
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    5
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 EpicB Media LLC
  • Show Website
    Unknown Origin