February 21, 1997: Contact & Disclosure - Steven M. Greer | Mel's Hole - Mel Waters

Dr. Steven M. Greer, emergency physician and founder of CSETI, joins Art Bell to unveil his ambitious Project Starlight Initiative, a plan to bring together dozens of government, military, and intelligence witnesses for a definitive public disclosure on extraterrestrial intelligence. Greer reveals he has assembled roughly 70 to 80 firsthand witnesses willing to testify under oath before Congress, including individuals who have worked on retrieval operations, tracked craft on radar, and encountered extraterrestrial technologies in classified facilities. He describes briefings with senior CIA officials, members of Congress, and White House staff, while detailing efforts by covert programs to suppress disclosure through the United Nations.

The conversation shifts when Art reads a stunning listener fax from a man named Mel Waters in rural eastern Washington, who describes a mysterious hole on his property near Manastash Ridge. The hole measures nine feet across, has never filled despite decades of dumped trash, and has swallowed 80,000 feet of fishing line without reaching bottom. Dogs refuse to approach it, birds avoid it, and nothing tossed inside produces an echo or impact sound.

This landmark episode introduces two of the most enduring mysteries in the show's history. Greer's disclosure crusade would reshape the UFO conversation for decades, while Mel's Hole instantly captivated listeners and became one of Art Bell's most legendary segments.