The Mystery of The Bermuda Triangle

Everyone has heard of the Bermuda Triangle at one time or another. It is a phenomenon that has puzzled a great many people, it's name forever linked to the mysterious disappearances that have taken place in the imaginary triangle. This section hopes to shed some light and propose a number of plausible theories. It is also called the Devil's Triangle, Limbo of the Lost, Hoodoo Sea and the Twilight Zone. It is one of the biggest mysteries of our time where paranormal events and unexplained disappearances are alleged to occur. The Bermuda Triangle covers approximately 500,000 square miles of the Atlantic Ocean. The official dimensions claim that this mysterious area is a stretch of area located in the region of the western Atlantic Ocean, between Bermuda; San Juan, Puerto Rico; and Miami, Florida. However when you start plotting ocean disasters that are attributed to the Triangle its boundaries shift all over the North Atlantic and sometimes into the Eastern Pacific and Gulf of Mexico.

The "Bermuda or Devil's Triangle" is an imaginary area located off the southeastern Atlantic coast of the United States, which is noted for a high incidence of unexplained losses of ships, small boats, and aircraft.In the passed hundred years, more than 50 boats and 20 airplanes have mysteriously disappeared. It is unknown what has happened to them. Most of them mysteriously vanished without a trace. Numerous planes and ships have vanished there without a trace, often in good weather or near a landing site or port. Just before disappearing, crews have made radio contact indicating that nothing was amiss. In rare instances missing ships have been found, but without their crew or passengers. It was named in 1945, after the disappearance of six Navy planes and their crews on December 5, a sunny, calm day with ideal flying conditions. Prior to that scores of ships of all sizes reportedly had vanished in the area.

Several theories have been developed to explain these disappearances. In some cases, they can be explained by the unique natural characteristics of the area. Countless theories attempting to explain the many disappearances have been offered throughout the history of the area. The most practical seem to be environmental and those citing human error. The majority of disappearances can be attributed to the area's unique environmental features. First, the "Devil's Triangle" is one of the two places on earth that a magnetic compass does point towards true north. Normally it points toward magnetic north. The difference between the two is known as compass variation. The amount of variation changes by as much as 20 degrees as one circumnavigates the earth. If this compass variation or error is not compensated for, a navigator could find himself far off course and in deep trouble. An area called the "Devil's Sea" by Japanese and Filipino seamen, located off the east coast of Japan, also exhibits the same magnetic characteristics and it is also known for its mysterious disappearances.

Another environmental factor is the character of the Gulf Stream. It is extremely swift and turbulent and can quickly erase any evidence of a disaster. This Gulf Stream can be very treacherous for inexperienced mariners. A third factor is the unpredictable weather pattern of the Caribbean and the Atlantic. Sudden local thunder storms and water spouts often spell disaster for pilots and mariners. A water spout is a tornado at sea that pulls water from the ocean surface thousands of feet into the sky, this water spout can wreck almost anything in its path. A fourth factor is the ocean bottom of that area, the topography of the ocean floor varies from extensive shoals around the islands to some of the deepest marine trenches in the world (the deepest point in the Atlantic, the Puerto Rico Trench, is located in the Bermuda Triangle). With the interaction of the strong currents over the many reefs the topography is in a state of constant flux and development of new navigational hazards is swift. And finally, not to be underestimated, the human error factor. A large number of pleasure boats travel the waters between Florida's Gold Coast and the Bahamas. All too often, crossings are attempted with too small a boat, insufficient knowledge of the area's hazards, and a lack of good seamanship.

The Bermuda Triangle legend really began in earnest on December 5, 1945, with the famed bizarre disappearance of Flight 19. Five Navy Avenger bombers mysteriously vanished while on a routine training mission, as did a rescue plane sent to search for them -- six aircraft and 27 men, gone without a trace. Airplane crew members report sudden power failures, instrument failures, and their inability to maintain altitude. One theory is that unusual weather conditions are responsible, other theories propose that phenomena are caused by alignments of the planets, time warps that trap ships and planes or forces emanating from the unknown ruins of Atlantis.