Is Bermuda Triangle Real

The disappearances of objects ranging from aircraft's to ships in a region near Bermuda has lent credence to the question is Bermuda triangle real? The Bermuda triangle mystery has been hyped so much, that people have even gone to the extent of fabricating accidents to support this myth.Bermuda triangle, also referred to as the Devil's triangle, is a region in the Atlantic Ocean, renowned as a mysterious place owing to the disappearances of a number of aircraft's and vessels traveling through this part. The demarcated triangle is located off the Bermuda coast, from which it derives the name 'Bermuda triangle'. Although, there are no concrete evidences supporting the Bermuda triangle mystery, many people have imputed the alleged disappearances to paranormal phenomena as well as extraterrestrial activities. That brings us to one of the most intricate questions asked - is the Bermuda triangle real, or is it just another myth?

Bermuda Triangle Theories
So what exactly is Bermuda triangle? Are these disappearances really caused by paranormal forces or is it the handiwork of some extraterrestrial beings? In short, is Bermuda triangle real or not? Hundreds of individuals have over a hundred explanations for these so called supernatural mysteries in Bermuda triangle. Some of the most popular ones are given below:
According to some, the area sports abnormal gravity patterns, such that any aircraft or surface vessels passing through the region is pulled down into a watery grave.
This may sound funny, but some people do think that extraterrestrial beings or aliens have decided to experiment on the life form on our planet, and they use the devil's triangle as the 'spot' to pick human specimen for further lab tests.
There are some who even argue that the triangle in itself is a portal to another world, and all the ships and aircraft's that have disappeared have reached that 'other world'.
Some believe that this region has rich stores of methane gas, and the huge gas bubbles originating from the ocean floor sink the vessels, and blow down the aircraft.
The latest claim is that it's a secret base for the United States, where the US army is testing its deadly weapons. And the whole negative publicity is sparked by the army itself, so that the entire world doesn't come to know about their evil intentions.
These are just some of the various theories of Bermuda triangle disappearances. What we realize after reading these theories is that people do have creativity in abundance, but what they lack is critical thinking.

Bermuda Triangle and Critical Thinking
The theories mentioned above have some or the other loopholes in them, but they can be noticed only when you try to analyze them critically. For instance, the Bermuda triangle methane gas bubbles theory was put forth by a researcher from Monash University and published in the American Journal of Physics. These sources were enough for people to blindly believe that the theory was really applicable for Bermuda triangle disappearances. Not many people tried to find out about the other places with high methane concentrations. If anyone would have taken efforts, they would have realized that the demarcated triangle is not actually the place with the largest concentration of methane. There are several other places, such as off the Carolina coast, where methane concentration is much more higher. Methane gas does tamper the density of water, which may in turn cause a ship to sink, but the process is not so fast that the crew can't send signals nor does the ship disappear without any trace. Like the methane gas theory, all the other theories which claim that the Bermuda triangle mystery is real are nothing but baseless assumptions made by self proclaimed Bermuda triangle experts, of the likes of Charles Berlitz.

Is Bermuda Triangle Real?
Of course not! And there are many evidences to prove that the so called Bermuda triangle mystery is just a hoax created by some limelight hogging frauds. What the mystery of the Bermuda triangle banks on is exaggeration of facts, but before we move on to this exaggeration part, lets take a look at some of the most renowned incidents of the Bermuda triangle fraud.

Flight 19 Incident: Birth of Bermuda Triangle
It all started on December 5, 1945, when a group of US fighter planes - Flight 19, suddenly disappeared in this area. Surprisingly, the aircraft which went on the search mission also followed the same fate. It was the moment the Bermuda triangle mystery was born. One could have termed it as a mystery then as no one really knew what happened to all the aircrafts. But investigations that followed revealed the reasons behind the allegedly mysterious disappearances, and thus, the mystery was solved. Flight 19 was actually a group of trainee pilots on a routine training session. In the process of training, the leader of the squad misinterpreted his position. As the entire group was supposed to follow the squad leader, all of them lost the way, hovered in the sky till their fuel was over and then crashed into the sea. In such fighter plane formations, all the fighter planes are expected to coordinate with the leader and follow him. This may sound absurd, but lets not forget that the pilots were trainees and the aircrafts were not sophisticated as they are today. The army sources confirmed that the aircraft which went as a part of rescue mission had a technical snag, which led to fume emission in its cockpit. The end result was an explosion and a tragic end to the rescue mission.

Extraterrestrial Beings and UFOs
People who claim that the Bermuda triangle is a handiwork of extraterrestrial beings, are most often the ones who misinterpret various phenomenons in the sky. For instance, meteors become UFOs when they are sighted by these people. Even Christopher Columbus mentions in his accounts that he ans his crew witnessed a ball of fire in the sky, which traveled some distance before going down into the sea. During the era of Columbus, some person mistaking a meteor for unidentified flying object was not surprising, but when some person does it now it is not just surprising, but absurd as well. Maybe it's an effect of the hordes of ET movies we get to see these days. There have been cases wherein fire at the oil rigs has been misinterpreted to be a UFO by the pilots of various aircrafts.

Exaggerated Facts About the Bermuda Triangle
When we talk about exaggeration of facts, we refer to various false claims made to support a mystery which doesn't exist. One such example is the number of accidents in the demarcated Bermuda triangle. The large number of accidents that reportedly took place in this demarcated area are enough for a person to believe that there is indeed something extraordinary about this area. However, a bit of critical thinking and you can save yourself the horror. The fact is that, a large number of these accidents which are said to have happened in the demarcated Bermuda triangle area, didn't happen here at all. The demarcated triangle lies between the coasts of Miami, Puerto Rico and Bermuda, and many of the accidents or disappearances that are alleged to have happened in this area, have actually happened miles away in some other part of the ocean. In fact, some ships which never left the dock and some aircrafts which never took off also find a place in the Bermuda triangle casualty list. This was the handiwork of sensationalism on the part of media and false claims by self proclaimed Bermuda triangle experts. The Bermuda triangle mystery reached an all time high with the release of Charles Berlitz's book - The Bermuda Triangle. When asked about the lack of statistical evidences to support his claims, Berlitz had a standard answer "the government, the navy in particular are conspiring to keep these disappearances a secret." Read more on the Bermuda triangle: location, map, mystery and recent disappearances.

So What is Bermuda Triangle Mystery All About?
This part of the ocean is familiar to 3 way water currents - the jet streams, the easterlies and the gulf stream. Tropical storms are quite common in this area, and hence, ships fighting a storm and ending up in a watery grave is not at all mysterious. As far as aircrafts are concerned, fog is the main culprit, with some aid from the pilot being inexperienced. As we all know, it's not easy to find something that disappears in the vast ocean. And lastly, exaggerated numbers also play a vital role in creating the aura of mysteriousness in this area.

Ascertaining whether the Bermuda triangle is real, is not at all a difficult task, if you analyze the facts about Devil's triangle. However, it's a normal human tendency to attribute anything that doesn't have a logical explanation to the supernatural. The same is the case with the Bermuda triangle disappearances, which never happened in the very first place. These Bermuda triangle facts are enough to prove that the Bermuda triangle is a myth, which has been created out of sheer foolishness on the part of the believers, some shrewdness on the part of the creators and some sensationalism and irresponsible attitude on the part of the media.
By Abhijit Naik
Published: 1/22/2010