The Bermuda Triangle

The Bermuda Triangle is located off the South- Eastern coast of the United States and in the Atlantic Ocean. The Dragons Triangle is located near Japan’s coastline in the Pacific Ocean. They are both invisible triangle shapes which are believed to be the causes of mysterious disappearances of ships, planes, and people. Many disappearances have occurred in both of these areas. While there are other explanations for the disappearances, the “black or white hole” theory is simply not possible. The term “Bermuda Triangle” was not fabricated until 1964, when it was brought up as “The Deadly Bermuda Triangle”, an article in Argosy by Vincent H. Gaddis. The Bermuda Triangle is best known for over 100 airplane disappearances and over 1000 lives lost since 1945. People argue that sea piracy or bad weather is often to blame; however not a lot of bodies or debris has been recovered so many people believe that there is some sort of black hole hidden under the water (Berlitz).

Some of the more interesting aspects of this area include: great ocean trenches of up to seven miles in depth, violent storms and hurricanes, unpredictable tidal like waves on calm seas generated by underground earthquakes, curious false bottom readings, and glowing streaks of luminescent fish or minerals. One general and common distress message which has been received during loss of ships and planes has been the reported observation of a spinning compass. Disappearances in the triangle include: 1609: mate Henry Ravens sailed in a long boat with a volunteer crew of 7 men never made it to his destination.

In 1814: US Navy vessel the Wasp, 1918: the USS Cyclops; the 300 people on board were never found. 1941: In late November and early December 1941, the USS Cyclops’s sister ships, Proteus and Nereus, both vanished on separate runs from the Virgin Islands to the USA. 1945- Flight 19, 5 Navy Torpedo Bombers, 14 crewmen disappeared without a trace. A rescue plane with 13 crewmen was sent out and also disappeared without a trace. On January 30, 1948 the aircraft Star Tiger disappeared without a trace en route to Bermuda with 31 people on board, moments later the pilot radioed to ground crew that they would be shortly arriving on schedule. Almost to the year, on January 17, 1949, the Star Tiger’s sister, the Star Ariel, was about to switch from radio contact with its departure point in Bermuda to radio contact with its destination Jamaica, when it vanished. The pilot had reported perfect weather (Winston).

The Bermuda Triangle area is the source of many hurricanes that ravage the southeastern coast of the United States from year to year. These are extremely dangerous storms which many seamen take for granted. Hurricanes and other storms can cause dangerous ocean waves that can overturn and sink any vessel, small or large-in hours or even minutes. Due to the rapid temperature variations in the triangle, some of these weather conditions can occur quickly, without any warning, and cause the sinking of a vessel overnight. Many of these weather conditions are electrical/thunder storms, which can disrupt communications between the vessels and the shore. The communications of planes are also affected. High pressures of ocean water in the area lead to the decomposition of organic materials into methane gas which, after a sufficient amount is built up, rises to the surface; because methane gas is a gas it displaces the water around it, decreasing its density (Fender).

A vessel floating above would feel a downward lurch when the disturbance reached the surface, similar to an elevator. This would happen because the seawater was not dense enough to allow the ship to remain buoyant. Depending on the size of the bubble, the ship or small vessel would fall down a meter or two, then rise back up; or descend far enough so that water could spill onto the deck and sink the ship. After the gas reaches the surface, it disperses in the air, where it can cause the engine failure of a plane. Subterranean landslides may unlock the gas, allowing it to bubble to the surface and reduce the density of the water. The Dragon’s Triangle is located between Japan and the Bonin Islands and has a reputation far worse than that of the infamous Bermuda Triangle. The Japanese call it the Ma-no Umi: the Sea of the Devil. Often compared to the Bermuda Triangle, the Dragon’s Triangle is an area where sea-going vessels and aircraft allegedly mysteriously disappear. Besides disappearing planes and ships, phenomena that are linked to the Dragon’s Triangle include ghost ships, USOs, lapses in time, and electronic equipment malfunctions.

Some writers even link the Dragon’s Triangle to the disappearance of Amelia Earhart (Christian). Legends dating back to 1000 BC tell of underwater palaces inhabited by dragons and of a great slumbering dragon which lived in the cavern beneath the sea, hence the name: Dragon’s Triangle. The disappearances of aircrafts, large maritime vessels, and fishing boats were occurring at such a high rate that Japanese authorities officially declared it a ‘shipping danger zone’ in 1950. The area is known to have various and sudden weather changes along with undersea volcanoes, which are abundant in the region. Ancient legends, some dating back to 1000 B.C.E. tell of dragons that lived off the coast of Japan and presumably, that is how the area became known as the Dragon’s Triangle (Berlitz). The fire-breathing monsters may have been volcanic eruptions. The people of the area believe that due to islands forming and disappearing is all the work of a white hole connected to a wormhole underneath the water and is somehow associated with the black hole in the Bermuda Triangle.

A ‘black hole’ is essentially an area that technically consists of a vacuum; anything that is nearby would get sucked into it and get consumed into nothingness. It is invisible to anything because it traps light within. If there were a black hole, it could not stay fixed at sea level – it would fall unstoppably to the center of the earth. If there was some way it was to stay there, it would be about as unnoticeable as an active volcano where vast amounts of radiation of all wavelengths, up to hard gamma rays, would be emitted as things fell into it. A ship falling into it would emit energy comparable to an atomic bomb – or even more. When it opens, everything and anything will be sucked inside. Once inside the mass inside will break everything into atoms (Christian). These triangles are no more dangerous than any other part of the ocean. The triangles have taken over thirty aircrafts and ships, with a total of over one thousand lives lost, and causing an overwhelming amount of economic damage as well.

Most disappearances can be attributed to human error, mechanical failures, it the Bermuda Triangle’s unusual environmental features. The turbulent Gulf Stream, which rapidly flows through the Bermuda Triangle and the Dragon’s Triangle, may easily dispel any evidence of a ship wreck or a plane crash. The Sargasso Sea lies within the Bermuda Triangle. This windless sea is filled with whirlpool-like currents and unexpected nets of seaweed that can easily entangle the engines of unwary sea going vessels. Neither the Dragon’s Triangle nor the Bermuda Triangle is located on the agonic line, where the magnetic north equals the geographic north (Tsosie). The Bermuda Triangle and the Dragon’s Triangle are directly across from one another and that if you went from the center of the earth, you would end up in the center of the other triangle.

The possible explanations for all of the things gone wrong in the Triangles are that they contain strange magnetic fields, oceanic flatulence or methane gas, weather which includes thunderstorms, hurricanes, tsunamis, earthquakes, high waves, currents, just pure bad luck, pirates, explosive cargoes and incompetent navigators (Fender). There is simply no evidence that there is a black hole in the Bermuda Triangle causing it to have mysterious behavior; it could be a variety of things, like bad weather, inexperienced crew, methane gas hydrate, or the even the craziest of abductions. The Bermuda Triangle along with the Dragon’s Triangle is still a mystery today. No one can settle on just one theory that explains the disappearances of hundreds of ships and aircrafts. These parts of the oceans are traveled just as much as any other part.

Works Cited

Berlitz, Charles. The Dragon’s Triangle. New York; Wynwood Press, 1989. “The Dragon’s Triangle.” http://dragonsunlimited.tripod.com/index-8.html Christian, Eric. “Space Physics: Black Holes.” .N.p., 15 April 2000. Web. 10 May 2012 Fender, J.B. “The Bermuda Triangle.” .N.p., 21 July 2005. Web. 10 May 2012 http://socyberty.com/paanormal/the-bermuda-triangle-3/ Tsosie, Raj. “Bermuda Triangle Mystery- Facts & Myths.” .N.p., 8 July 2009. Web. 9 May 2012 http://www.bermuda-attractions.com/bermuda2_00004e.htm Winston, Nick. “Bermuda Triangle: Earth’s Mysteries.” .N.p., 5 September 2007. Web. 8 May 2012 www.library.thinkquest.org./C007461/bermuda_triangle.htm