5 Most Mysterious & Unsolved Underwater Mysteries
Published in Education at March 30th, 2017 at 11:52 AM
The Bermuda Triangle
The Bermuda Triangle is infamous for claiming at least 20 planes and 50 ships over the last 100 years with the death toll of passengers ranging into the thousands. Located in the Sargasso Sea between the Florida Keys, the Island of Bermuda, and Puerto Rico, its a hard area to avoid for many craft travelling across the Atlantic and Caribbean. Scientifically, some believe that these crashes are due to old navigation systems used that had been affected by magnetic fields, or possibly by methane hydrates.
Other believe that these strange disappearances are due to UFO abduction and even having something to do with the lost city of Atlantis. Some theories that it is the opening point of an inter-space wormhole used by alien craft to reach Earth quickly, and that ships and aircraft sometime wader in only to be lost in space.
To this day, it is still unclear as to what has caused all these planes and boats to disappear within the “Devil’s Triangle”.
The Submarine Disappearances of 1968
The USS Scorpion, INS Dakar, Minerve and K-129. What is it that these four submarines from four different countries have in common? They all vanished mysteriously in 1968. Within two days, two different submarines vanished within the Mediterranean Sea. The INS Dakar was headed out from Gibraltar to Israel when it disappeared somewhere near Cyprus. The French Submarine Minerve only travelled 25 nautical miles out of it’s base in Toulon, and then just completely disappeared without a trace. Then, the Soviet Sub K-129 mysteriously sank somewhere in the North Pacific. Not long after, the USS Scorpion too vanished off the south-eastern coast of Greece. No one is too sure what caused all these submarines to disappear with no explanation in such a sort period of time (Dakar and Minerve both in January, K-129 in March and Scorpion in May), it all seemed very odd. Espcially as three of the four vanished in the Mediterranean Sea.
It is quite likely that this is all just co-incidence. Wreckage from the USS Scorpian has been recovered. Theories go that a torpedo accidentally detonated on board the sub, sinking it, but official US Navy investigations are yet to reach a conclusion. K-129 was even the subject of a mysterious CIA salvage operation that became a major Cold War secret. Theories suggest that K-129 may have had a missile explode on board after a hatch was improperly sealed, or that it collided with the American USS Swordfish. There are many who believe the losses of the USS Scorpian and K-129 are connected as part of some diplomatic/millitary intelligence conspiracy between the US and USSR. As for the INS Dakar and Minverve? No one is too sure.
Yonaguni
On the southern coast of Yonaguni-jima (located amongst Japans southern Ryukyu islands) there lies a mysterious rock formation reffered to as the Yonangui monument, which is believed by many to be more than natural. Many speculate that his formation is in fact a civilised construction built some 10,000 years ago. It’s origins has been among debate as to this day, it is unknown what culture these ruins originated from. The near perfect straight edges and step like structure of the monument, as well as what appear to be carvings decorating its walls, have many believing it was in deed the work of an advanced civilisation; a work of ancient engineering comparable to the Pyramids. How it came to be underwater is unknown.
Naturally, there are those who believe it was the work of aliens (or at the very most, humans aided by aliens), and will cite it as part of a network of similar underwater structures they believe of are alien origin, like the ruins of Dwarka of the coast of India. There are of course the far less salacious explanations for the Yonaguni Monument's existence, the obvious being that it is simply just a natural rock formation. Wild looking things can occur entirely naturally. The layers of sandstone from which is is made appear to have been totally naturally occurring upon closer inspection, not at all placed with sentient intention. Being in a earthquake prone zone, its also entirely that the straight edges and splits in the rock just the result of earthquakes. All this said, there are that suggest it may have been used or altered by people at some point in history by people who lack the masonry skills to make their own large structures.
Atlantis
Atlantis is one of the most popular myths when it comes to underwater mysteries. Although the actual Atlantis has not been discovered, Several other ancient cities have been found in the depths of the ocean. These cities include one found in the oceans surrounding Cuba, Egypt and Greece to name a few. The Myths of Atlantis come about with Greek Philosopher Plato, who are you are probably aware, was a rather smart guy who like thought experiments. Some insist that Atlantis is no more than one of his thought experiments, but it seems only logical that he based it on something. In trying to understand Plato's mythical Atlantean civilisation, many historians, geographers and scientists alike have all tried to pinpoint the location of the lost city.
Various locations in the Mediterranean Sea are often thought to be possible locations for Atlantis have been proposed, including Sicily, Crete, Santorini, Cyprus, Sardinia and Malta. One leading theory is that Atlantis was actually a reference to the Minoan Civilisation that lived on the island of Crete. They were a mighty naval power, much like Atlantis, and find their way into Greek mythos often enough, such as the legend of the Minotaur. Archaeological and historic evidence suggest that Minoan Civilisation ceased to be a major power after it was all but annihilated in a megatsunami caused by the eruption of the volcano Thera (around which the the settlement of Santorini is built). This tsunami is said to have cause widespread devastation around the Mediterranean and may have been the scientific reason for Moses's crossing the Red Sea (but that's a story for another day); to anyone witnessing it, it would have appeared as if the sea had swallowed up and sunk the Minoan Civilisation, just as legend has it happened to Atlantis.
Lake Michigan's Stonehenge
We all know about the original Stonehenge in Wiltshire, England but did you know that in 2007, another Stonehenge like structure was found submerged within Lake Michigan nearly 4000 miles away from the original. It’s origin is unknown.
It is believed that these ruins are around 9,000 years old making it older that the Stonehenge found in Wiltshire which is only 5,000 years old. As of right now, Found at the site are prehistoric carvings depicting what appears to several mastodon.
