Have you ever ever heard of the island of Bermeja? As soon as marked on maps and acknowledged as a authentic territory, this little piece of land within the Gulf of Mexico has now vanished with no hint. What occurred to the island of Bermeja? How may one thing so outstanding on a map yesterday all of the sudden disappear as we speak? It’s a thriller that has puzzled many and sparked quite a few conspiracy theories.
Some consider that america authorities deliberately destroyed the island to realize management over oil reserves within the space. Others speculate that the island by no means existed within the first place, and its look on maps was nothing however a mistake. Regardless of the reality could also be, the story of the island of Bermeja is an enchanting one which reminds us how even probably the most strong and tangible issues can disappear with out warning.
The island of Bermeja had been within the Gulf of Mexico, 200 kilometers from the northern shore of the Yucatan Peninsula and 150 kilometers from the atoll Scorpio. Its actual latitude is 22 levels 33 minutes north, and its longitude is 91 levels 22 minutes west. That is the place cartographers have been drawing the island of Bermeja for the reason that 1600s.
A map of the sailors from Portugal
First, Portuguese sailors discovered this island, which was 80 sq. kilometers in measurement. In line with a variety of accounts, Bermeja was already there on a Portuguese map from 1535, which is stored within the State archive of Florence. It’s the report that Alonso de Santa Cruz, a Spanish cartographer, mapmaker, instrument maker, historian and instructor, gave to the court docket in Madrid in 1539. It’s referred to as Yucatan and the Islands Close by. Within the guide Mirror of Navigation by Seville, the sailor Alonso de Chavez from 1540 additionally talks in regards to the island of Bermeja.
On Sebastian Cabot’s map, which was printed in Antwerp in 1544, there’s an island referred to as Bermeja. On his island Bermeja, the Islands Triangle, Area, Negrillo, and Arrecife are proven, and the island even has a restaurant. Bermeja’s picture stayed the identical through the seventeenth century or a lot of the eighteenth century. In step with previous maps of Mexico, cartographers within the twentieth century put the Bermeja at that deal with.
However in 1997, one thing went improper. The Spanish analysis ship doesn’t discover any signal of the island. Additionally, the Nationwide College of Mexico was within the lack of the island of Bermeja. In 2009, one other analysis ship went to the island. Alas! Scientists haven’t discovered the island or any signal of it.
Others are additionally lacking
Bermeja wasn’t the one island that all of the sudden disappeared, after all. Between New Caledonia and Australia, within the coral sea, an island named Sandy had the identical destiny. However the island is absolutely sandy and appears like a protracted spit of sand that wasn’t on all maps. Nearly all previous maps confirmed it, and it was thought that the well-known Captain James Prepare dinner was the primary particular person to note and describe it in 1774.
Even after 100 years, an English whaling ship has been to the island. In 1908, it gave the British Admiralty actual geographical coordinates in its report back to them. As a result of the island was small and had no individuals, not many have been serious about it. Nonetheless, its form modified from map to map, and in 2012, Australian marine geoscientists and oceanographers went to the sandy island.
And the truth that they couldn’t discover the island was a foul shock. As an alternative of an island, there have been 1400 meters of deep water under the boat. After that, the scientists questioned if the island may vanish with no hint or by no means have been there. It shortly grew to become evident that it didn’t exist just a few many years in the past.
In 1979, French hydrographers took the Sandy island off their maps, and in 1985, Australian scientists did the identical. So the island was solely left on digital maps, which individuals often consider as paper. The island itself was not there. Or it may have solely been actual within the minds of all those that watched.
And there was an island referred to as Haboro close to Hiroshima, off the coast of Japan. For instance, 120 meters lengthy and virtually 22 meters tall isn’t very huge, however it’s nonetheless simple to note. On the island, the fishermen received off, and vacationers took it away. The images from 50 years in the past appear like two rocky peaks, one coated in crops.
However eight years in the past, virtually the entire island went underwater, leaving solely a small rock. If nobody is aware of what occurred to Sandy, the explanation why the island disappeared is evident: it was eaten by the tiny marine crustaceans referred to as isopods. They lay their eggs in rock cracks and destroy the stone that makes up islands yearly.
Haboro melted away till it was only a small pile of rocks. Crustaceans should not the one creatures that reside within the ocean and eat the islands. Many coral islets are killed by different creatures within the ocean, just like the crown-of-thorns starfish. Off the coast of Australia, the place these sea stars are quite common, many coral reefs and small islands died.
Is that this what occurred to Burmeja Island?
The identical factor may occur to Bermeja as to Sandy. The primary individuals who noticed the Bermeja mentioned it was brilliant purple and on an island, so it might need come from a volcano. And this type of island is straightforward to make and simple to destroy.
The Bermeja had sufficient meals, however there aren’t any analysis ships that discovered any signal of the island. There aren’t any rocks left, no damaged stones, nothing; solely the deepest a part of the ocean. Bermeja has but to go away or be misplaced. Researchers say with plenty of confidence that it by no means existed. As you understand, it’s the identical factor after we speak in regards to the island of Sandy. Within the 18th century, a cartographer of New Spain thought this as a result of nothing else was proven on the map to the north of an island Area.
The researcher Ciriaco Ceballos, conducting cartographic surveys, haven’t discovered Bermeja or Not-Grillo. He gave a easy rationalization for why the mapmakers earlier than him had made errors. Because of the quite a few reefs within the Gulf, the water was tough, and voyage was very harmful, significantly on the boats of the sixteenth century.
It’s not unusual that the sailors tried to remain out of the deep water and weren’t hurrying to take a look at the island. And it’s really easy to be improper within the testimonies and observations. However this viewpoint was thrown out and forgotten when Mexico received its independence.
The playing cards with photos of Bermeja have been used to start out making maps of the Gulf. And there has by no means been a check to see whether or not islands and no person are there. However there’s extra to the story than simply the plain rationalization. Its major level is that Bermeja is without doubt one of the factors that make up the ocean border between Mexico and america.
On this variant, the People weren’t worthwhile to Bermeja as a result of oil and fuel pastures within the Gulf of Mexico would belong to america, not Mexico. And it’s mentioned that the People did take the island, which shouldn’t exist as a result of they only blew it up.