Nothing to do with the Bermuda Triangle...
just something colourful to fill the space
It's estimated the ship has been drifting unmanned for decades. And it is believed this is the freighter Cotopaxi, which disappeared in the Bermuda Triangle way back in 1925. Now it has returned, minus its crew. It is a mystery to all as to what happened to the ship for the past ninety years. Scoff if you will, but I am fascinated by the phenomena surrounding this fabled part of the world.
The Triangle is a loosely defined region in the western part of the North Atlantic Ocean (sort of between Bermuda, Florida and the Bahamas), where ships and aircraft were rumoured to have disappeared without a trace.... for over one hundred years.
As long ago as 1881, there have been unusual circumstances in that part of the ocean; at that time a ship vanished then reappeared minus its crew... and did so a second time! It was in 1945 that Flight 19, a group of five U.S. bombers completely vanished here Enough ships and aircraft went missing over the years to set a pattern of sorts. In 1964, a magazine writer was the first to describe the mysterious zone as "The Deadly Bermuda Triangle". Others wrote on the topic, expanding on the original writer's ideas, bringing more world attention to the supernatural aspects of the events.
The U.S. Navy will not acknowledge the existence of the Devil's Triangle, nor will the U.S. Board on Geographic Names. The region doesn't appear on a single map drawn by any U.S. government agency. Hmm, a conspiracy? Makes you think about Area 51, doesn't it? X-Files, and all that stuff?
Some people have argued that the Triangle is just a "manufactured mystery" (the words of author Lawrence David Kusche), claiming the theories and stories bear evidence that is flimsy and even false.
Kim Novak in Satan's Triangle, a 1975 TV movie
Theories abound: a supernatural force that draws air and sea craft into the Triangle and transports them to another time, place, even dimension; an extraterrestrial transportation/teleportation gateway to alternate dimensions or even the cosmos.. who knows? The former seems the most unlikely, unless you really believe in that sort of thing. As for the latter, well, I don't think it's absurd to believe there is other life in the universe. We weak and dopey humans surely can't be the only living beings in existence, so.... why not a much more highly advanced race from afar who travel here and establish a hub for transportation and communication... who knows? Maybe the Triangle is a collection point of some sort.
Then there is, or was, the school of thought that the lost continent of Atlantis lay beneath the waters of the Triangle. Um, not so sure about that one. We'll see.
Natural explanations (or theories) range from unusual magnetic fields confusing ships' compasses to the Gulf Stream to violent weather to human error to methane eruptions that could suck a ship downward. Not much fun in that.
I first heard of the Bermuda Triangle - also known as Devil's Triangle - when I was a kid in the 1970's. I think I must have read a little something in the newspaper about an incident to begin with, but I was also drawn to the uncanny side of the Triangle by the slew of movies that cropped up at the time. Author Charlie Berlitz released a bestseller called The Bermuda Triangle in 1969 that renewed the public's interest and inspired huge popularity in Hollywood during the 70's.
Here are just a handful of the TV movies and series of that era that explored both the fictionalized and "real life" Bermuda Triangle:
Satan's Triangle 1975 ABC TV Movie of the Week
The Fantastic Journey 1977 short-lived TV series
In Search Of: The Bermuda Triangle 1977 TV narrated by Leonard Nimoy
The Bermuda Depths 1978 made for TV
The Bermuda Triangle 1978 based on Berlitz's book, but never aired on U.S. TV
I'm sure I watched all or nearly all of these things. In my tweens and early teens I didn't have the most discerning tastes, so even the schlockiest stuff was game. Hey, I was even down with all the Bigfoot and Abominable Snowman movies and documentaries. My philosophy was (to quote X-Files): "I want to believe".
As a kid, all things supernatural and paranormal fascinated me. I loved movies, TV shows, and books of both fiction and non-fiction that dealt with the subjects. I even owned books about the folklore of vampires, werewolves, ghosts, and related beings. Now grown-up, I still love the old movies (and a few newer ones) but I'm no crackpot who goes around wearing a tinfoil hat and a scarf made of wolfsbane. My interest in the otherworldly in a real-world sense is casual at best. It's cool but far from an obsession. But set me down in front of a cinematic gem like The Day the Earth Stood Still and I'm transfixed.
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