If you’re into alien-heavy conspiracies, unsolved mysteries, high school geometry, and tropical islands, it doesn’t get more intriguing than the Bermuda Triangle (a.k.a. Devil’s Triangle). That was, of course, until the mystery of The Triangle was finally solved a few years ago! Well … not really.

 

No matter, because The Alaska Triangle exists and the mystery behind it is way, way more interesting. So much so that the Travel Channel even decided to make a TV show out of it.

Alaska ShoreZone Program NOAA/NMFS/AKFSC; Courtesy of Mandy Lindeberg, NOAA/NMFS/AKFSC

The borders of the Alaska Triangle connect Anchorage and Juneau in the south to Barrow (recently renamed Utqiagvik) along the state’s north coast. Like much of the state, the vast expanse within the triangle’s perimeter contains some of the most rugged, unforgiving wilderness in North America. Boreal forest, craggy mountain peaks, alpine lakes, and large swaths of apparent nothingness. Amid this dramatic backdrop, it’s hardly surprising that people go missing. What is surprising is the sheer number of people who go missing. Add to that the fact that many disappear without any evidence, and bodies (alive or dead) are rarely ever found.

Interest in the Alaska Triangle began in 1972 when a small, private craft carrying U.S. House Majority Leader Hale Boggs’ seemingly vanished into thin air somewhere between Juneau and Anchorage. What followed was one of the nation’s largest-ever search-and-rescue missions. For more than a month, 50 civilian planes and 40 military craft scoured a search grid of 32,000 square miles. They did not find a single trace.

President Lyndon B. Johnson (right) with House Majority Whip Hale Boggs (left).

Again, given the sheer size of the Triangle, it’s easy to chalk up its “mysteries” to the obvious perils of traveling through such a vast, inhospitable landscape. But, by the numbers, it seems something more interesting is at play. More than 16,000 souls — including airplane passengers and hikers, locals and tourists — have disappeared within the Alaska Triangle since 1988. The rate per 1,000 people is more than twice the national missing persons average, and the rate of persons who remain missing is far higher still.

For almost as long as there have been planes flying over the Atlantic Ocean, theories have abounded about the nature of the Bermuda Triangle. Lovers of lore and mystery have postulated everything from unusually heavy air and bizarre weather patterns to alien involvement and energy lasers from the lost city of Atlantis. Many have speculated similar reasons for the disappearances within the Alaska Triangle.

Leaflet | Map data by OpenStreetMap, under ODbL.

The Alaska Triangle - Alaska Triangle borders connect Anchorage and Juneau in the south to Barrow. 16,000 - More than 16,000 people have disappeared within the Alaska Triangle since 1988.

The most likely scientific explanation, however, is geography. The state’s massive glaciers are rife with giant holes, hidden caves, and building-sized crevasses which all provide the perfect burying grounds for downed aircraft. Once an aircraft crash-lands or a hiker becomes stranded, the fast-moving, year-round snow squalls can easily bury any trace of a person or even a plane.

At least, that’s what the scientific community would like us to believe. But, we’re going to keep looking into the wormholes and alien reverse gravity technology because both are way more interesting.