Bermuda Triangle: The Devil"s Sea - Unsolved Mystery
The
Bermuda Triangle, or Devil’s Triangle, is the name given to an area
that has been at the center of many unexplained disappearances. The
Bermuda Triangle lies between Bermuda, Miami and San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Within this area of water, numerous planes and ships have mysteriously
vanished.
The mystery of the Bermuda Triangle began in
1950. A small article appeared outlining the strange disappearances of
ships and planes. The area was given the name The Devil’s Sea. In a
feature in 1964, Vincent Gaddis christened the area the Bermuda
Triangle.
One of the most famous disappearances occurred in
1945. Flight 19 was a squadron of five naval bombers. All five planes
supposedly disappeared while flying over the Bermuda Triangle. The two
planes that set out to rescue Flight 19 also disappeared and were never
found. Naval ships such as the USS Cyclops and the Marine Sulpher Queen
also disappeared without a trace.
Another disappearance
was that of Donald Crowhurst, who was attempting an around the world
voyage. A large ship carrying ore also mysteriously vanished after only
three days at sea. An official statement by the US Coastguard states
that repeated search attempts were made, but no traces were ever found
of the missing planes or ships.
Popularity of the Bermuda
Triangle phenomenon reached a peak in 1974 with the publication of
Charles Berlitz’s book, The Bermuda Triangle. At around the same time,
a film with the same name was also released. Numerous articles and
books have since been published to try and give scientific explanations
to the mystery. Some of the explanations have been more than credible.
The
stretch of water where the disappearances occurred is notorious for
tropical storms. Many of the reports at the time claim that the ships
and planes were lost in calm waters. Weather reports checked since do
not agree with these reports. Also, the area of water under the
triangle has large areas of methane gas eruptions. These eruptions
create areas of gas that are incapable of supporting the weight of a
ship.
Lawrence Kusche, a reference librarian at Arizona State
University, conducted a lengthy investigation into the mystery. His
conclusions cast doubt on many of the disappearances. David Crowhurst’s
diaries prove his mental state to be suicidal as he sailed around the
world. An area of the sea off of Japan has the same strange magnetic
elements as that of the Bermuda Triangle. Many disappearances have also
occurred there.
There are also a number of
discrepancies in the reports of the Flight 19 disappearance. Flight 19
was reported to have been manned by experienced pilots flying in calm
weather. In fact, the flight was a training exercise for students and
the weather had turned stormy. The last contact whe flight stated that
they were running low on fuel. The flight would no doubt have
crash-landed, and no one could have survived the stormy seas of the
triangle.
For all Kusche’s credible explanations of the
disappearances, one mystery remains. None of the crashed planes were
ever recovered. As a mystery, the Bermuda Triangle is one that may
never be solved. It is certainly an area that wouve cause for concern
to anyone traveling across