'Ghost' crop circle spotted near Preston Candover, Hampshire

Matt Adamiak first spotted the crop circle near Preston Candover, in a field off Spiers Lane, in August last year.

Read more: Fizz Fest to be held at Black Chalk Vineyard in July

However, passers by noticed that is has now changed.

Instead of the crops being flattened to form a pattern, they have grown up in the original shape.

Matt, who works for the NHS but enjoys taking photographs of crop circles as a hobby, got in touch with a friend who is a farmer regarding the mysterious change to the circle.

He said: “He said it’s called a ‘ghost crop circle’. Where the crop has been harvested by the farmer but there is either grass or another crop growing through from where the wheat or crop has been pushed down to create the original pattern.”

The original crop circle

The 40-year-old, from Southampton, has always been fascinated by crop circles, and has used his drone to photograph many over the years.

He said: “There are so many around Hampshire and Wiltshire. They look so crazy, it’s a mystery. People think they are done by aliens but it’s not, they are done by people with planks of wood and string. But they are, in theory, ruining the farmer’s crop. So, farmers aren’t happy about it.”

Crop circle formations have appeared worldwide, but south-west England is said to be the world-capital of crop circles, with many found in Wiltshire. Reports of crop circles in the area first began to circulate in the 1970s. However, it wasn’t until the 1980s that the phenomenon grew with frequent reports being linked to aliens.

In 1991 two people – Doug Bower and Dave Chorley - came forward claiming they had created many crop circles as a hoax.

However, one of their circles was described by an investigator as impossible for human beings to make.

Matt said crop circles still remain somewhat of a mystery: “A lot of people still think it’s aliens. It goes back years. There was a father and son from Wiltshire who used to go out in the dead of night. But it remains a mystery how these people aren’t seen doing it or leave any trace.

“They go down the tractor tramlines to get into the field. It’s very clever. They want it to look like it’s done by aliens, some are unreal. You do wonder how it’s humanly possible to get the level of detail and the lines so symmetrical.”

Message from the editor

Thank you for reading this story. We really appreciate your support.

Please help us to continue bringing you all the trusted news from Basingstoke by sharing this story or by following our Facebook page, click this link and click like.

Kimberley Barber