In the trove of recently digitized CIA documents, I found an unusual document. It was a U.S. Commerce Department bulleting from June 1960 containing a digest of Soviet science writing from popular and scholarly journals. Within this digest I found a bizarre claim made in the Soviet newspaper Pravda in which a Soviet researcher asserted that he discovered Lemuria off the coast of India. V. Bogorov, surveying the Indian Ocean for the International Geophysical Year, reported: In the Western portion of the Indian Ocean we crossed the Equator six times. Here, close to the shores of Africa, is an area of an enormous number of small islands. They are the remnants of the ancient continent of Lemuria, which was lost under the waters of the ocean. In tests of the bottom, conducted at depths of almost five kilometers, sand was found under a two-meter layer of ordinary oceanic silt. Apparently this also is a trace of ancient Lemuria. The isles are surrounded by coral reefs, and atolls often rise several meters above the water. Corals are the principle accumulators of lime. Gigantic colonies of these small organisms have been conducting their constructive work for hundreds of millions of years. While it is not entirely clear whether he intended this reference to Lemuria to refer to the Theosophical fictitious continent or the obsolete scientific hypothesis that inspired it, either way this is a pretty strange reference. It is, however, of a piece with Soviet opinions on sunken continents from the era.
According to N. Zhirov’s book on Atlantis, Soviet scientists such as D. I. Mushketov, A. N. Mazarovich, M. V. Klenova, and Vladimir Obruchev all expressed their belief that Atlantis was real and that the Azores and/or Canaries were the remnants of the lost continent. They relied on the outdated and faulty geological arguments of Pierre Termier, from 1912 (!), to defend the position, even though Termier’s views were the subject of vigorous criticism in his own day. In 1974, a Russian ship traveled to the Azores, and Vladimir Marakuyev photographed ruins underwater halfway between Portugal and Madeira, on the Atlantic Ampere Seamount, connected in part to this strange belief. The photos were apparent fakes, since said ruins were never seen again, but the story ended up in the New York Times, which reported on May 21, 1979 that Prof. Andrei Aksyonov had declared the photographs to be proof of the lost continent of Atlantis. “It’s possible that it’s part of Atlantis, maybe not the whole thing, but a part,” Aksyonov said, offering also that everyone outside of Russia has laughed at his claims. Of all the strange things, at the time of his Atlantis claims, Aksyonov was a researcher aboard the Soviet research vessel Vityaz, which seems to be the same Vityaz that V. Bogorov sailed in searching for Atlantis two decades earlier. The Vityaz started life as the Nazi passenger and cargo ship Mars. The voyage the Times recorded turned out to be one of its last, and the ship went on to become a floating museum. This might all seem like Soviet silliness, but there seems to be method to the madness, an ongoing effort by the Soviet government to promote fringe history and pseudoscience in the West by encouraging beliefs in ancient astronauts, lost continents, UFOs, and other unusual ideas. We can only speculate on the reasons for it, but it seems that undermining public confidence in Western science was part of the Soviet agenda.
30 Comments
Tom
1/20/2017 10:20:47 am
The Soviets might be forgiven for jumping to conclusions about Lemuria before Plate Tectonics became widely accepted. However if the scattering of islands were the remains of Lemuria and the sea floor 5 kilometers down had supposedly the beaches of Lemuria, considering aeons of natural erosion, this fabled continent must have had some stupendous mountains quite beyond any existing today.
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flip
1/20/2017 12:30:47 pm
I wonder if populist Atlantis fascination is a sort of 'god of the gaps' fallacy in place of real knowledge about what's under the ocean. Considering modern technology has allowed us a glimpse of what's below, in the past people have had little idea of what's down there and so it seems mysteriously unknown. Atlantis is already in the consciousness thanks to ancient writing, and natural disasters, sunken ships and distant islands make it seem tenable. Like anything else, the more we explore and discover, the less believable the myth will become.
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Only Me
1/20/2017 01:06:28 pm
There is a certain appeal for the "unknown" beneath the ocean. It's been established we know more about the Moon than what is on the ocean floor, so there remains much to be discovered.
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Colon-veto.Equals.Only.Me
1/23/2017 07:32:22 pm
Oh, Jason... talking with you is like masturbating with a cheese grater; it is more annoying than entertaining.
Only Me
1/23/2017 07:44:37 pm
I'm sorry, Scott Reaney. I'm not Jason, so you just wasted your time. I will address more of your lies, just to be fair.
Colon-Veto.Keeps.Using.Pseudonyms
1/23/2017 10:34:57 pm
Of course you're not Jason using a pseudonym. (nod, nod, wink, wink, nudge, nudge)
Only Me
1/23/2017 11:12:27 pm
So, I take it you're still not going to address the fact your accusations against Jason are groundless. You're more interested in chasing figments of your imagination. Good to know.
DaveR
1/20/2017 01:23:54 pm
The "god of the gaps" argument is so weak it's laughable.
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TheBigMike
1/20/2017 02:45:53 pm
In all likelihood the line was written into the movie to make the whole thing more acceptable to a wider audience. The dialogue had to get people who do dismiss science invested in the scientists because "well, at least they belive in god"
RG
1/20/2017 03:02:03 pm
Daver, you are just as radical as some theists but only from atheist point of view.
DaveR
1/20/2017 03:20:03 pm
TheBigMike,
ake
1/20/2017 03:22:12 pm
And now we have taken the burden of "undermining public confidence in Western science" upon ourselves. Funny world, huh?
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Shane Sullivan
1/20/2017 06:24:19 pm
Let's not be dismissive of mysterious ancient ruins, Jason. They can be found all over the world, some of them hundreds of millions of years old.
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Tony
1/20/2017 09:57:39 pm
Now we know why Stalin had that huge moustache -- so he could pass as a walrus.
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Graham
1/20/2017 10:35:07 pm
That was a very interesting article.
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Colavito.Equals.Anal. Leakage
1/20/2017 11:47:51 pm
Just a reminder that Jason Colavito is a repeat plagiarist... a liar... and a general 'chicken-shit'
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Only Me
1/21/2017 12:16:13 am
I'll respond, Scott Reaney.
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Americanegro
1/22/2017 07:07:43 am
"Provide evidence of your accusation of plagiarism. Do note it is impossible to make that claim if the content of your compilation is not recognized as your intellectual property."
Only Me
1/22/2017 03:10:40 pm
You do know what the definition of plagiarism is, don't you, son?
Colavito.The.Liar
1/22/2017 03:26:29 pm
Oh, Jason... it's so nice of you to reply.
Colovito.The.Cowardly.Liar
1/22/2017 03:52:23 pm
I had sifted through more than 100,000 pages of old newspapers compiling the materials in question several years ago, and forwarded a copy of the work to a guy named James Veira.
Only Me
1/22/2017 04:48:15 pm
"Oh, Jason... it's so nice of you to reply."
Colavito.Is.Only.Me.the.Coawrd
1/22/2017 05:23:25 pm
Hey! Lying Shit-Stick named Colavito!!
Only Me
1/22/2017 05:48:29 pm
Compose yourself, Scott. First you say I'm Jason, now you say I'm his mom. I can't be three people at once.
Colon-Veto.Uses.Pseudonyms.To.Hide
1/23/2017 07:11:22 pm
Jason, why do you keep pretending like this?
Only Me
1/23/2017 07:37:14 pm
Scott, why do you hide behind pseudonyms while falsely claiming I'm Jason?
Colavito.Hides.Cuz.He's.A.Cowardly.Liar
1/23/2017 10:45:00 pm
How come you don't have SEVERAL blog entries like "Once Again, The Canadian Researchers Have Proven That I Am Totally Full Of Crap?" The discovery of human relics in the Yukon pre-dating all currently known remnants by about 10,000 years pretty much dismantles your blatant stupidity and excessive arrogance. The Yukon is equal to the Arctic, for those 'genius supporters' you have... like your Mom. This was a big story... for real researchers, but easily ignored by biased cocksuckers, like yourself.
Only Me
1/23/2017 11:16:39 pm
What Jason chooses to investigate is up to him.
An Over-Educated Grunt
1/21/2017 10:54:57 am
You know, Scrote - can I call you Scrote? Doesn't matter, I'll call you Scrote - for someone who resorts to name calling you're not very good at it. If you were, Scrotator, you'd have picked one nail and hammered it until love you or hate you your audience couldn't think of your target without hearing that insult as well, but you didn't do that, Scrotey-Doo. You even missed out on Culovito, but what should we expect from a Scrote even a dog wouldn't lick? You're an empty Scrote to boot, an intellectual gelding. You shot your load, Scroteyboy, so just retreat back into whatever moist cave you normally hide in and let the grown ups talk.
Reply
DaveR
1/23/2017 12:51:15 pm
"Captain, I can't keep doing this to the blog. She won't take it anymore!" Scrotey, Chief Engineer, Starship Shinterprise. Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
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AuthorI am an author and researcher focusing on pop culture, science, and history. Bylines: New Republic, Esquire, Slate, etc. There's more about me in the About Jason tab. Newsletters
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