What Are the Mysteries of the Bermuda Triangle?
The Bermuda Triangle, sometimes called the Devil’s Triangle, is an area of the Atlantic Ocean where ships and planes are known to disappear without a trace. The triangle covers nearly 500,000 square miles and contains over 600 aircraft and dozens of ships that have disappeared under mysterious circumstances since 1945. Investigators have studied the region to try to determine what causes these disappearances, but they haven’t reached any firm conclusions as of yet.
Explanation from scientists
The Bermuda Triangle is typically considered to be a stretch of the Atlantic Ocean bounded by Miami, Florida; San Juan, Puerto Rico; and Bermuda. The popular name for this region appears to have been derived from reports of unexplained shipwrecks in this area. However, it has never been determined why there are more shipwrecks in this particular area than in any other part of the ocean. Recently some scientists claimed that fluctuations in Earth's magnetic fields may cause compasses to point south instead of north (a phenomenon called magnetic declination). When ships try to find their direction based on these malfunctioning compasses, they can get lost and even crash into one another due to strong currents caused by shifts in Earth's tectonic plates. Researchers suggest that pilot error might also contribute to the high number of accidents in this area. They say pilots use longitude coordinates to navigate when over open water. It is possible that a pilot's judgment about where he or she was in relation to an island could be off by as much as 20 miles (32 kilometers) because of differences between GPS and radio-based navigation systems. The precise location of many islands is not known because they were discovered by sailors who did not take measurements and charts of their expeditions with them. Other mysteries: In 1939, five U.S. Navy bombers flying near Iceland vanished without a trace; four years later, 13 crew members vanished after three U.S. TBM Avengers sent out on a routine patrol returned. Even though all planes have had instruments to measure magnetic variation, the planes all crashed while traveling at altitudes too low for this instrumentation to work properly. Another mystery surrounds the disappearances of two American fishing boats, Rachel and El Faro, which went missing during Hurricane Joaquin in 2015. All 32 people aboard Rachel disappeared before being found safe days later; El Faro's 33 people went missing during Hurricane Joaquin before any wreckage was found. Some experts speculate that ships sailing through the Bermuda Triangle vanish because they accidentally fall off the edge of the continental shelf. If you're within 50 miles (80 kilometers) of the edge, a sudden shift in winds could drive your boat right off the steep slope and into deep water—and doom.
While science doesn't have an answer yet, conspiracy theorists insist there must be something else going on. For example, one legend says that the last pirate treasure ever buried was near Port Royal on Jamaica’s western coast—and whoever finds it will control its riches for eternity. But first you need to find the exact spot where that last cache is hidden!
In addition to rumors about pirates' treasure or mysterious magnets pulling down airplanes, some believe UFOs kidnapped everyone. One legend claims that every human being suddenly vanished from Europe when aliens visited earth around 1878. In the Middle Ages, an outbreak of mass hysteria is said to have occurred when a demon appeared in the sky. Those in Europe saw the same apparition and spread stories of how they had seen a dragon in the sky, which prompted fears that this creature would destroy all life on Earth. In 1697, sightings led to panic across New England, as church bells rang from morning until night. People claimed to see a creature resembling a giant sea serpent rise from the water and kill cattle for no apparent reason. The most famous of all shipwrecks was the Titanic; it sank on April 15th 1912.
Explanation from Historians
For centuries, stories have been told of a place where boats and planes mysteriously disappear. The location is called the Bermuda Triangle and its three points are Miami, Florida; San Juan, Puerto Rico; and Kingston, Jamaica. Many theories exist to explain this area’s mysteries: bad luck, aliens, rogue waves and even one that suggests time traveling. One popular theory for decades was that there was some type of magnetic force causing ships to lose their way in the region.
The mystery deepens because when scientists studied magnetic force from other regions around the world, they could not find any appreciable evidence for these supposed disruptions in those areas either. Magnetic disturbance in Haiti was measured by experts who found no significant change from what is usually recorded there. Theories on why the triangle has so many bizarre occurrences range from geological activity to bird migration patterns.
One recent event has sparked a renewed interest in this topic with many people wondering if there might be more truth than fiction behind the legends of the triangle. In October 2017, six men were rescued after spending five months adrift at sea after their boat lost power and sank near St. Lucia. The men had all left for fish but were quickly taken aback when Hurricane Maria bore down on them. They survived on an inflatable raft which was eventually spotted by a US coast guard helicopter looking for help while they were lost at sea with dwindling supplies and food.
Explanation from Conspiracy Theorists
Thousands of years ago, Carthaginian explorer Hanno wrote about seeing wild African animals from his ship. He saw elephants, apes, and monstrous tigers with horns. Sailors began calling the area the Punic Gulf. Ancient seamen also passed through a horrible and desolate country full of putrid smells and dark forests that seemed never to have known human presence before them. According to legend, a few hundred miles northeast lies an island shaped like a turtle where sailors would suddenly disappear in an apocalyptic display while their vessels somehow miraculously came home on their own. On September 19th 1794 Captain Englemann observed through his telescope what he claimed was an island being split apart by earthquakes. The next day it was gone. On October 11th 1872, Alain Dupetit-Thouars reported that he had seen an island south of Haiti around noon but when he returned at 2:00 PM it had vanished without a trace. The last major disappearance occurred on December 5th 1945 when five Navy planes disappeared off the coast of Florida and were never found again despite one last desperate search that went as far north as Maine. In 1964 Charles Berlitz published The Bermuda Triangle which was an international bestseller and which has been translated into over 20 languages.
I'm not sure how many more people need to disappear before we start paying attention to this mystery!
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