an Alien Sponge from Atlantis?

I have been an avid reader of the Fortean Times, the Journal of Strange Phenomena for getting on for 20 years now. It is good to see that it now has a fair selection of old articles in its archives. It looks as if more will be put on line as time goes by, a welcome move in my view.

A few years ago veteran fortean researcher Peter Brookesmith wrote a fascinating article about a now largely forgotten mystery known as the Eltanin enigma. What I like about this particular mystery is that any outlandish theories were put to the sword by a mundane but still interesting solution.

The Eltanin enigma

In August 1964, The American National Science Federation Polar Research vessel Eltanin the ship photographed an unusual object at a depth of 13,500 feet approximately 1000 from Cape Horn. The object appeared to be a pole rising from the ocean floor with twelve spokes radiating from it, each ending in a sphere. All of the spokes were at 15 degree angles to each other.

Given that the object looked like an antenna there was some speculation that it could be some sort of ancient technology possibly from an ancient or an alien civilisation. One researcher, New Zealander Bruce Cathie, developed a theory that it formed part of an ancient planetary grid that is of fundamental importance to an understanding of our planet (whatever the understanding may be!).

The reality!

Perhaps to save the embarrassment of earth mystery writers this enigma never got the exposure that other “mysteries” have received over the years, especially since the item has been known to biologists since 1888. It is in fact a deep sea sponge Cladorhiza concrescens which appears to be common in southern latitudes. Needless to say that the those who held more outlandish views as to its origin were less than pleased at such a mundane explanation.


Eltanin
Grid
Sponge