Just like the flow of time, mysteries cannot be exactly foretold. It’s like the weather that we cannot really predict accurately a few years from now. We may know the seasons, but never the exact reasons. It’s like someone’s fortune that may or may not last. We may have it now but until when? And of course, mysteries can be compared to people who have peculiar modes of behaviour. Why do they act like that? There may be speculations and educated guesses regarding these mysteries, but no facts.

Now, to unlock the mysteries of life, we must understand what the mystery is, why it occurred even though science cannot back it up, who called it a mystery, or where it originated. There are unexplainable things that influence it, too, and some of these things are totally bizarre.

Yet again, how do we classify a phenomenon as a mystery? How can such things be mysterious when it may be a usual occurrence to other living creatures? A mystery can be defined by “anything that is kept secret or remains unexplained or unknown” or simply put, a mystery is a parade of puzzling questions that cannot be easily answered by human beings. It does not have a definite answer like other scientific facts. It can also be “any truth that is unknowable except by divine revelation”. Here’s just a few popular mysteries we’re all baffled about: the Bermuda Triangle, Bigfoot, the Lost City of Atlantis, and Extraterrestrial Life.

15. Bermuda Triangle

The Bermuda Triangle stretches from Miami to Bermuda to Puerto Rico, acquiring its name for having a trilateral shape. Though, it’s not exactly bound within those three places. It’s a strange force and energy that can also be felt near the area. In fact, Christopher Columbus was the first to report the peculiar effect on compass readings and the appearance of a fireball when he passed by the coined Devil’s Triangle.

Each year, it claims an average of 4 aircraft and 20 yachts in addition to at least a thousand lives it took in the past century. This includes the United States Ship (USS) Cyclops that went missing with the 309 travellers in 1918, and the yacht that survived three hurricanes and was retrieved without the passengers in 1955.

14. Bigfoot

Having a height of at least six to ten feet, Big Foot has been thought to exist with at least twelve diverse types 3,000 years ago, according to some researchers. However, it was only in 1811 when the great explorer of Western USA and Canada, David Thompson, reported the traces of the Sasquatch that he found in the Rocky Mountains.

In 1967, Bob Gimlin and Roger Patterson gathered the most controversial and convincing evidence to validate the presence of Bigfoot. In Bluff Creek, California, Gimlin, and Patterson caught the activities of an ape-like figure that had human-like movements on film. Up to now, no evidence has been forwarded that could support or discard the claims of the existence of Bigfoot.

13. Lost City of Atlantis

According to ancient Greek philosopher Plato, the Lost City of Atlantis was an influential and progressive kingdom that sank due to a divine punishment more than ten thousand years ago. Before the city was shaken by an earthquake and washed away by flood, the loss of morals was believed to be the root of destruction. In 1627, Francis Bacon created a utopian world in his novel entitled, “The New Atlantis”. More than two hundred years after, U.S. Congressman Ignatius L. Donnelly published “Atlantis: The Antediluvian World”.

At present, historians and archaeologists can only link the Lost City of Atlantis to the Greek island Santorini, which was wrecked by a volcanic eruption. However, there are still certain debates whether the description of the sunken territory was a mere metaphor or a fact regarding a once powerful kingdom that met its end.

12. Loch Ness Monster

The Loch Ness Monster is believed to be one of the enigmatic creatures living in our bodies of water, specifically in Loch Ness in Scotland. St. Columba first sighted Nessie during the Dark Ages. It was when he attended a burial of a man who was killed by a peculiar water beast. Though, writings about monsters and demons were common in the 7^th century. Thus, it wasn’t a big deal back then. It took more than ten centuries before the Loch Ness Monster surfaced again and became a famous scare. Doctor D. Mackenzie saw it in the 1870s. George Spicer and Arthur Grant witnessed it in 1933, too. Like other mysteries, it wasn’t proven whether Nessie was simply a delusion or not.

11. Stonehenge

Thus far, no one really knows for sure whether the Stonehenge was constructed to be a memorial, center for healing, Druid temple, or a monument built to foresee eclipses around 3,000 BC. Another long-term mystery is how the stones were transferred from one distant place to another, but one theory states that the boulders may have been moved by the glaciers during that era. Before the Stonehenge was donated to the national government of England, Cecil Chubb bought it for 6,000 pounds in an auction that was organized when the original landowners died. In return for his generous and patriotic act, Prime Minister Lloyd George honoured and knighted Chubb.

10. Jack the Ripper

In East London, Jack the Ripper is often recognized as the most intriguing and mysterious killer since 1888 because he was never identified nor captured. His alias is traced back to letters sent by the slaughterer, admitting his crimes and revealing his plans for another murder. The police officers did try to investigate and solve these cases, but they had reservations because the crime was well thought out. They have suspected at least 100 suspects including the number one suspect, Aaron Kosminskski, a Polish immigrant.

Of all eleven murder cases that Jack the Ripper was associated with, the Canonical Five stands out the most – five prostitutes whose bodies were torn apart and whose organs were taken out, which was an indication that he had experience in medical science. Strange enough, Jack the Ripper also abided by a schedule when killing these people, mostly women, and this is during early mornings and the weekends.

9. Extraterrestrial Life

Recent research continues to debate on the topic of extraterrestrial life, even involving the topic in science fiction films and books, but no accepted evidence has been found to verify or deny their existence. For example, a high-frequency radio signal was spotted from a sun-like star in the constellation Hercules, but it was almost certainly not an alien radio signal because when the Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence (SETI) Institute pointed the Allen Telescope Array at it, nothing was detected. It all boils down to the ancient alien theory, which proposes that life can be sustained outside Earth because ancient people believed that aliens visited the Earth before and shared their knowledge about science and engineering, resulting to more mysteries inhabiting our planet.

8. SS Ourang Medan Ghost Ship

The story of the SS Ourang Medan Ghost Ship fires up from a report that alerted nearby ships and posts that there were several lifeless people on deck. Rushing to be their saving grace, the captain of the Silver Starship tried to save them. However, when they got there, no one was alive anymore. The sight of corpses scattered was indeed a total nightmare, but without any damage done to the ship, the crew from the Silver Star wondered how the people were killed – natural or manmade destruction? As soon as they decided to tow the ship, smoke emitted from it. Thus, they ran out of the ship and went back to the Silver Star. From there, they saw the SS Ourang Medan Ghost Ship explode, sink, and vanish, leaving no records of it.

7. Taos Hum

The Taos Hum, which can only be genuinely heard by 2% of the said population, was officially reported by the residents in 1993. But first, the small town of Taos is in North-Central New Mexico. The famous hum detected in this area is also described as a whir or buzz that had a low-frequency like running sound of a distant pump, probably from 30 to 80 hertz. It can be heard, as they say, usually from 8 pm to 9 am. The locals also say that hearing these sounds has its side effects. For instance, they experienced headaches, dizziness, nosebleeds, and sleep disturbances. Nonetheless, there were no source found for the mysterious sounds and vibrations.

6. Voynich Manuscript

Named after a Polish book dealer and former owner, Wilfrid Voynich, the Voynich Manuscript has yet to be decrypted completely. The first owner of the handwritten book with approximately 170,000 characters was the grandson of Emperor Charles I, Rudolf II of Bohemia and it has been passed from one generation to another, getting to where it is now – Yale University, where Hans Peter Kraus donated in 1996. Still, no one has found its purpose, meaning, author, and origin, unlike the hieroglyphics. Though, there were traces of European culture. Compared to the perplexing text, the illustrations found in the book were categorized as botanical, astronomical, cosmological, pharmaceutical, etc.

5. Bloody Rain

The bodies of water in Egypt turning into a stream of blood was one of the ten plagues during the time of Moses. Contrary to the bloody river that arose before, the bloody rain that we know isn’t exactly because of blood but because it’s red. The red rain was first reported in 1896, in the same location – Kerala, India. It also poured out in 2012, but the most unforgettable occurrence was in 2001 when it rained from July to September for about 20 minutes straight.

The first explanation as to why it was red is the red particles in the droplets when they were examined. Next, several theories were established to explain this phenomenon. For instance, meteors or spores were believed to be the cause of the red rain. However, again, these were considered educated guesses, not accurate facts.

4. The Black Knight Satellite

The Black Knight Satellite has been the talk of the town since the 1950s. The BKS was even featured on Time Magazine, St. Louis Dispatch, and The San Francisco Examiner. It was originally assumed to be a Russian spy satellite, but as researchers dig deeper into this indefinite flying object, other assumptions arose. The location of the BKS was believed to be in the polar orbit, which makes it an observational satellite because earth-mapping and earth observation usually occur in the polar orbit. A decoded message transmitted to space stations even said that it was from the Epsilon Bootes Star System, proving the presence of extraterrestrial life. Another also stated that it was from the Endeavor Space Shuttle. Nonetheless, no one has claimed to be the owner of the said satellite.

3. Abominable Snowman

The counterpart of the Bigfoot of California, the Abominable Snowman or Yeti is believed to be in the mountains of Asia, specifically in the Himalayas. As described by hikers, the Yeti stands at 6 feet with dark grayish or reddish-brown hair.

Sightings and reports through the years have failed to confirm its existence. Attempts like pictures and hard evidence were even examined closely by researchers and scientists. Hence, the pictures were eventually deemed fake. Sir Edmund Hillary found a scalp of the creature, but it came from a serow, a goat-like animal inhabiting the Himalayas. In 2007, Josh Gates found some mysterious footprints but they were regarded as bear footprints. Recently, in 2011, a finger was found in a monastery, yet it had a DNA of a human being.

2. Green Children of Woolpit

In the Middle Ages, curiosity got the better of the two green children of Woolpit. Yet, before one of the two learned English and related their story, Sir Richard de Caine adopted them. Though they were offered bread and meat, they declined and only accepted green beans to satisfy their hunger. As stated by the girl who was later named Agnes, they simply came out from an underground place called St. Martin’s Land, to witness the sunlight because they have lived in perpetual twilight throughout their lives. Eventually, her male companion did not survive, but she became acquainted with the activities of the locals in Woolpit and her skin was not green anymore. This may be due to the healthy foods that she devoured throughout her stay. Thus, it was eventually concluded that Hypochromic Anemia may have been the cause of their green-hued skin. But why were they locked up for so long? And by whom? This still remains a sinister mystery.

1. Georgia Guide Stones

As the name suggests, the stones, which were made of the finest granite, is found at the highest point in Elberton, Georgia, USA. They served as the people’s guide according to Babylonian, Classical Greek, Sanskrit, and Egyptian scripts. It was also said to be aligned with the stars and earth, putting others in utter wonder why it was created like that. Apart from that, it also served as a sundial and clock. It cost $5,000 dollars back then because of its first-rate granite. At the west side of the stone lies some inscribed notes and history of the guide stones that answers some of the questions of the nearby residents, historians, and researchers. However, people believe that time capsules are buried beneath it, which will solve more mysteries of how and why it was created.