121: The Kansas UFO


Episode 121: The Kansas Ring

Back in 1971, the small town of Delphos, Kansas became a vital point on the map of the United States’ most important UFO encounters; it’s a mystery that brings together some of ufology’s most famous researchers, fascinating physical proof, and a farm family left with concerning evidence of alien visitation on their property.

Hosted and Written  by Laurah Norton

Researched by Anna Luria  and Laurah Norton

Engineered and  Produced by Southern Gothic Media/Rachel Boyd

EPISODE INTEL:

In this investigation, we move beyond eyewitness testimony to examine the physical trace evidence left on a north-central Kansas farm in November 1971. When a glowing, mushroom-shaped craft hovered near the Johnson family's treeline, it left behind more than just a story. It created a phosphorescent, hydrophobic ring in the soil that baffled researchers for decades.

This summary explores the involvement of J. Allen Hynek’s protege, Ted Phillips, and his documented experiments on the soil’s seed germination and moisture resistance. We also analyze the long-term physiological effects reported by the witnesses, including permanent numbness and localized paralysis. Additionally, we examine the unidentified fibrous substance discovered 16 inches below the surface. From the National Enquirer’s scientific prize to the 1980s chemical re-analysis in the Journal of UFO Studies, we piece together why the Delphos Ring remains one of the most significant physical-trace cases in the American archive.

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WORKS CITED
N/A, "Investigation continues into Delphos UFO site." The Salina Journal, 1972.

Pat Gaston, "Life hasn't been the same since UFO." The Salina Journal, 1974.

Pat Gaston, "$5000 award lends credibility." The Salina Journal, 1973.

N/A, "UFOs Brought Down to Earth." The Kansas City Star, 1972.

Michael Bauer, "Life Will Never Be the Same Again." The Kansas City Star, 1978.

Robert C. Trussell, "The Sightings." The Kansas City Star, 1985.

N/A, "Kansas Town Reports Round, Orange, UFO." Sapulpa Daily Herald, 1972.

N/A, "UFO On Worry List, Too." The Hays Daily News, 1971.

N/A, "Evidence Strong For Kansas UFO Sighting." Greater Oregon, 1973.

Allen Spraggett, "The Unexplained." York Daily Record, 1972.

Tom Tiede, "More Unidentified Flying Objects. . ." The Springfield News-Leader, 1972.

Dick Bothwell, "Debunking the UFO 'mythology.'" Tampa Bay Times, 1975.

Gerrard Kaonga, "'Eye-opening' scorch marks. . . " UNILAD, 2023.

Michael Bauer, "More In The Sky Than Meets The Eye?" The Kansas City Star, 1978.

N/A, "Founder of Center for UFO. . ." The UFO Chronicles, 2020.

Erol Frauk, "The Delphos Case. . ." Journal of UFO Studies, 1989.

N/A, “Delphos.” Kansas: A Cyclopedia of State History. Kansas Preservation Alliance, 1912.

N/A, "Rural Kansas: Once UFO Hot Spot." High Plains Public Radio, 2016.

Amy Bickel, "UFO sightings once common in rural Kansas." Topeka Capital-Journal, 2010.

N/A, "Delphos Couple Wins $5,000 For UFO Story." The Belleville Telescope, 1973.

N/A, "Grace Bedell Billings Home." Kansas Preservation Alliance Archives.

Max McCoy, "At the UFO capital of Kansas, a celebration of the weird and wonderful." Kansas Reflector, 2023.

N/A, "Delphos." KSGenWeb Archives, 1912.

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120: The Crescent Hotel