Mystery of Bermuda Triangle

The Bermuda Triangle or "devil's triangle" is an imaginary triangle stretching from Norfolk to the island of Bermuda and back to Puerto Rico . The term "Bermuda Triangle" was first used in an article written for Argosy magazine in 1964. The author claimed that in this strange expanse of sea a number of planes and ships had disappeared without explanation. Although it was the first time the term was used, the mystery of the triangle was already known. Actually, as early as 1492, Christopher Columbus reported that while he sailed through the area, his compass went haywire and he spotted a ball of fire in the sky. This could easily be explained away as a meteor and the trouble with his compass as a discrepancy between true north and magnetic north that exists in the triangle.

Another famous encounter is the discovery of the abandoned ship Mary Celeste in 1892. There was no sign of the captain, his family, and the eight crew members or what happened to them. Save for one lifeboat, all the supplies had been left on the ship. It appeared that they had abandoned ship quickly, but why?

And the most famous of all strange occurences in the triangle: the disappearance of the five navy avenger bombers of Flight 19, is to this day blamed on the deadly triangle, but when the facts are laid out, the mystery isn't so mysterious. All of the crewmen were inexperienced trainees except for the patrol leader Lt. Charles Taylor. Taylor's compass malfunctioned during the flight and he chose to rely solely on navigating on landmarks below, but the brewing storm caused poor visibility, and he unknowingly led them farther into sea. The explanation is that the five planes ran out of gas and plunged into the sea, but to this day, the wreckage has never been found. Of course, these are just a few of the happenings in the infamous triangle.

Apr 3, 2008