Back in the summer of 2011, Fox News released a relatively short segment on a mysterious object that some ocean explorers found in the Baltic Sea. Everyone was intrigued by the Baltic Sea anomaly mystery, and the story subsequently exploded on social media. At the time, many speculated that the object was potentially alien in origin, thanks to its circular shape, angular patterns, and the “trench” that appears to trail behind it. For years, many considered the anomaly to be underwater evidence of UFOS, though others thought it could be Nazi technology. Some people even believed that the anomaly held the key to a lost city.
Ocean X Team — the treasure hunting crew of divers who found the object — was incredibly keen on returning to the site so they could study it in greater detail, but they had multiple problems securing funding. Experts were fairly skeptical of the find, and brushed off the discovery as mundane. However, years later, some are still convinced that the anomaly is much more important than so-called "experts" realize. Is there an alien space ship on the bottom of the Baltic Sea, or are scholars right to pass over the mysterious hunk of rock?
One of the main reasons why the story went viral back in 2011 was that the anomaly closely resembles the Millennium Falcon of Star Wars fame. Its basic shape was close enough to the Falcon's for people to make the link, and the similarity was more than enough to fuel speculation that the object was of extraterrestrial origin.
That very first Fox News article even mentioned the spaceship right in its title, "Millennium Falcon at Bottom of Baltic Sea?". Though there are some similarities, many die-hard Star Wars fans quickly equated it to a totally different ship from the franchise's lore, the Ebon Hawk.
The Rock Appears To Be Man-Made
The original (and only) sonar image of the anomaly certainly makes the unnamable rock seem out of place. Sporting a circular shape with geometric ridges and right angles streaked across its surface, it doesn't look like it's been eroding underwater for centuries. These details make the anomaly seem purposefully designed, and a new addition to the Baltic seafloor. Artists’ renderings have given the anomaly more depth and life, and some even added additional details.
Among these additions are stairs, and other features that give the anomaly a technological appearance.
Ufologists Immediately Declared It An Extraterrestrial Sighting
The anomaly's seemingly man-made design certainly helped sway people towards UFO theories. However, that wasn’t the only clue that people latched onto; in the original sonar image, the object appears to sit at the very end of a long trench. While the anomaly itself is roughly 60 feet in diameter, the trail behind it spans over 650 feet.
This made it seem like the anomaly had crash-landed, and skidded along the ocean floor until it came to a stop at the edge of the precipice. These are the two main pieces of evidence Ufologists point to when arguing that the anomaly is of extraterrestrial origin.
Many Scientists Were Skeptical
Of course, the scientific community was skeptical when a team suggested that they found an extraterrestrial rock; that’s their job. Most looked at the images and concluded that it was a likely a natural formation. However, many also requested samples and further information on the anomaly, so that they could make a more concrete ruling.
The Ocean X Team provided those interested with other rocks they found at the site, but they turned out to be mostly mundane. One of the rocks was volcanic, a rare underwater occurrence, but not impossible. Scientists noted that this particular rock likely ended up near the anomaly thanks to glacial movements. Portions of the Baltic Sea were formed thousands of years ago from slow-moving ice, so it's possible that the volcanic rock was contained in one of these glaciers.
Experts Thought The Image Was Caused By A Technical Accident
Not everyone who saw the sonar image of the anomaly immediately thought of UFOs. Expert divers and marine scientists immediately declared that the image was an artifact caused by a faulty scan. They believed that the sonar equipment used was misconfigured, or even faulty. Research tech Jonathon Hill from the Mars Space Flight Facility at Arizona State University noted it was simply the “edge effect," saying:
"Notice how the entire top of the image is much darker than the rest of the image, almost like there's a dark strip along the top? That's a type of image artifact we call an edge effect, and it's something we regularly see in a lot of remote sensing imagery. I'm certain that if they collected another sonar image centered on the 'track,' they would see gentle blending [of the seafloor] and it suddenly wouldn't look like a track at all."
A Naval Officer Believed It Could Have Been A Nazi Base
According to the Russian newspaper Pravda, the anomaly isn't alien at all. Instead, they said that it could be a remnant of World War II. A supposed retired naval officer noted that it could have been used as an underwater base for Nazis.
He speculated that it might have housed weapons meant to counter submarines and other naval ships in the Baltic Sea. Given Hitler’s propensity for insane technological progress during the war, the thought of an underwater Nazi base isn't too far-fetched an idea.
