February 23, 2009

Chicago (IL) - A Google Ocean image of an underwater section of the Atlantic ocean at 31 15'15.53N 24 15'30.53W is drawing wide attention as a possible location of the lost city of Atlantis. The location is about 700 miles off the coasts of Morocco and Portugal and fits in very nicely with the whereabouts of Atlantis, as described by Plato.

The sharp outlines and uniform wall-like structures seen in the image are believed by many to be completely unnatural and the result of manmade activity and his structures. What can be seen clearly are several nearly straight lines, near perfect rectangles and what may be roads extending out toward dry land. The structure is currently under several thousand feet of water and was only recently made available thanks to the Ocean extension of Google Earth.

The aeronautical engineer who originally discovered the site has identified a "perfect rectangle" in the shot, noting also that the grid lines look like an aerial map with roads extending out.

According to the article, "Plato described [Atlantis] as an island 'larger than Libya and Asia put together' in front of the Pillars of Hercules -- the Straits of Gibraltar. He said Atlantis was a land of fabulous wealth, advanced civilization and natural beauty destroyed by earthquakes and floods 9,000 years earlier."

Some other interesting finds with Google Earth have included a previously unidentified forest where researchers found several new species of butterflies, snakes and plants. In addition, Google's Street View cars have captured some unexpected images -- like this recent deer collision, as well as what could possible be a new trend -- flashing the Google Street View car as it drives by. Aerial images taken from high orbiting Google Earth satellites have also captured some lower resolution images of nude sunbathers -- and these folks were in their own fenced in back yards.