EARTH SCIENCE-Unsolved Underwater Mysteries

Flamingo tongue snail, vampire squid, Kiwa the god of shellfish, the immortal Benjamin Button jellyfish or the lost city of Heracleion…. are these myths our imagination has conjured up? They might as well be, given how little we know about them. The hidden depths of oceans are home to a multitude of strange yet intriguing creatures and entities. These massive water bodies hold great mysteries, and while some of these have been solved, there are plenty more secrets left to unlock.

More than 95% of the ocean terrain remains unexplored, yet to be investigated and searched by human eyes. NOAA’s Office of Ocean Exploration and Research is planning expeditions to unravel the intriguing enigmas hidden beneath the cryptic depths. Most of the discovered secrets lurking in these waters are quite baffling and odd.

5 UNDERWATER PHENOMENA BAFFLING SCIENTISTS

CRYSTAL PYRAMIDS DEEP UNDER THE OCEAN

It is said that there are unusual crystal pyramids deep within the layers near the Bermuda Triangle. Scientists have found out that the stories have surfaced because of a crystal orb that was alleged to have magical attributes. Believers insist that scientists need to delve further to explore the mystery surrounding these structures, as stories of their appearance have ignited our curiosity. Sightings have not always been reliable, but believers of the crystal pyramid are not easily dissuaded by the truth. This orb was allegedly discovered lying atop these crystal pyramids decades ago according to people but investigators are confident that there is really no substantial evidence to suggest the existence of these structures or to prove the allegations.

A PECULIAR AMORPHOUS CREATURE

In 2012, news about a strange-looking amorphous creature lingering around an oil-rig sent people into a frenzy. The giant, blob-like organism was seen pulsating for some time, changing shapes and gurgling constantly, taking the people around the rig by surprise. Researchers later explained that the creature was actually a gigantic jellyfish, something already recognized by science. Although it was left unexplained what the creature was doing near an oil rig, people are speculating that the drilling might have caused the large jellyfish to come up to investigate.

researchers are still in the process of examining the ruins to determine if there really is a lost civilization deep in the waters of the Guanahacabibes Peninsula.

CUBAN UNDERWATER CITY

Off the coast of western Cuba, there is a mysterious underwater structure that depicts ruins of a submerged city with a complex architecture, including corridors, pyramids and hallways. The city is situated almost 2000 feet below sea level and researchers think it would have taken about 50,000 years for the mystical city to completely sink to these depths. Using sonar and underwater video images, researchers are still in the process of examining the ruins to determine if there really is a lost civilization deep in the waters of the Guanahacabibes Peninsula.

How many times have you come across the myth of the lost city of Atlantis? According to folklore, this island sank almost a thousand years ago. According to historians, the ancient city never really existed. However, findings of civilizations buried underwater have flamed the fires of this myth. The islet of Bermeja was believed to be located off the north coast of the Yucatán Peninsula during the 16th-20th centuries, but no longer exists on the map anymore. Studies attribute this mysterious disappearance to reasons such as geological shifts in the ocean depths, possible catastrophes and raised sea levels, but nothing has been proven for certain.

The science of water species and intelligent life still needs to be analyzed. The ocean being a vast terrain holds a variety of sea species and exploration technology is still being refined to uncover the different myths surrounding these terrains. With a large percentage of area (95%) still unexplored, marine biologists and researchers are inventing cutting edge technologies and techniques to dive further into these depths. As Rachel Carson said, “Even in the vast and mysterious reaches of the sea we are brought back to the fundamental truth that nothing lives to itself”.