what explanations and elements both explain the disappearance of numerous aircrafts and ships in the Bermuda Triangle
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Answer:
Bermuda Triangle, section of the North Atlantic Ocean off North America in which more than 50 ships and 20 airplanes are said to have mysteriously disappeared. The area, whose boundaries are not universally agreed upon, has a vaguely triangular shape marked by the Atlantic coast of the Florida panhandle (in the United States), Bermuda, and the Greater Antilles.
USS Cyclops
USS Cyclops
The USS Cyclops—pictured here in the Hudson River, New York, in 1911—went missing in the area of the Bermuda Triangle in March 1918. There were no survivors, and the wreck has never been found.
U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph
Reports of unexplained occurrences in the region date to the mid-19th century. Some ships were discovered completely abandoned for no apparent reason; others transmitted no distress signals and were never seen or heard from again. Aircraft have been reported and then vanished, and rescue missions are said to have vanished when flying in the area. However, wreckage has not been found, and some of the theories advanced to explain the repeated mysteries have been fanciful. Although theories of supernatural causes for these disappearances abound, geophysical and environmental factors are most likely responsible. One hypothesis is that pilots failed to account for the agonic line—the place at which there is no need to compensate for magnetic compass variation—as they approached the Bermuda Triangle, resulting in significant navigational error and catastrophe. Another popular theory is that the missing vessels were felled by so-called “rogue waves,” which are massive waves that can reach heights of up to 100 feet (30.5 metres) and would theoretically be powerful enough to destroy all evidence of a ship or airplane. The Bermuda Triangle is located in an area of the Atlantic Ocean where storms from multiple directions can converge, making rogue waves more likely to occur.
Bermuda
Bermuda
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wave. ocean. Cresting ocean wave. Large sea waves. storm, hurricane, tropical cyclone
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According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, “There is no evidence that mysterious disappearances occur with any greater frequency in the Bermuda Triangle than in any other large, well-traveled area of the ocean,” and boaters and fliers continue to venture through the triangle without event.
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
This article was most recently revised and updated by Adam Augustyn.
Greater Antilles
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Greater Antilles
islands, West Indies
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Greater Antilles, the four largest islands of the Antilles (q.v.)—Cuba, Hispaniola, Jamaica, and Puerto Rico—lying north of the Lesser Antilles chain. They constitute nearly 90 percent of the total land area of the entire West Indies.