Ep 130: The Betz Sphere Part 1
“They told me to put the orb the floor and give it a push. It rolled a ways and stopped. Then It turned by itself then rolled about four feet. It stopped. Then it turned again and rolled to the left about eight feet, made a big arc and came right back to my feet.” - Lou Egner, photojournalist for The Jacksonville Journal
Location: Fort George Island, Florida
Background:
Sometimes people come into our lives that change everything. Sometimes that change can come from an object. In March of 1974, the Betz family of Fort George Island, Florida found such an object, while investigating their property for wildfire damage. It appeared to be a shiny steel ball, measuring 7.96 inches in diameter and weighing 21.34 pounds. Being a simple, yet so out-of-place item in the middle of nowhere, it caught the attention of the eldest Betz son Terry, who took it home as a souvenir. The family, and eventually the rest of the world, would soon learn that this was no ordinary metal ball. The sphere would demonstrate highly unusual properties, like rolling that would indicate self-guidance, vibrating and emitting high-pitched frequencies, and a strange magnetic quality. These actions would be witnessed not only by the family but by the military, scientists and news media, all eager to determine who made this thing and why. While most authorities would go on record as believing the sphere was human-made, all would admit that it was no doubt weird, and no group could come forward to claim it was positively theirs. In the end, it would not be the sphere so much that would change the lives of the Betz family, but the people who were interested in it. As one might expect, if you possess an item that breaks the laws of physics, some organizations will go to great lengths to acquire it.
Suggested Listening:
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Part of the inspiration for this series is Rob Morphy’s intriguing and comprehensive Blog article for the Betz Sphere on Mysterious Universe’s website. In addition to being a writer and all-around cool dude CryptoMonsterHunter, Rob is also an illustrator, graphic web designer, filmmaker and co-host of the Cryptonaut Podcast and The Earth’s Mightiest Bastards YouTube Channel (Strong language). Find Rob by clicking any of the links above, follow him on Twitter @rsmorphy and subscribe today!
Reference Links:
The Betz Mystery Sphere: Alien Artifact or Doomsday Device? by Rob Morphy on Mysterious Universe
“Just A Ball: Navy; Not So: Its Finders” from the St. Petersburg Times, Mon. Apr 15, 1974 Part 1
“Just A Ball: Navy; Not So: Its Finders” from the St. Petersburg Times, Mon. Apr 15, 1974 Part 2
Skylook the UFO Monthly Official Publication of MUFON, #78, May 1974
“Mysterious Steel Sphere Explained” article from NICAP’s publication, UFO Investigator, May 1974
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CREDITS:
Episode 130: The Betz Sphere Part 1. Produced by Scott Philbrook & Forrest Burgess; Audio Editing by Sarah Vorhees Wendel; Sound Design by Ryan McCullough; Tess Pfeifle, Producer and Lead Researcher; Research Support from the astonishing League of Astonishing Researchers, a.k.a. The Astonishing Research Corps, or "A.R.C." for short. Copyright 2019 Astonishing Legends Productions, LLC. All Rights Reserved.