The Mary Celeste Crew
Just consider how many people find a gripping story about a maritime catastrophe, such as the Titanic. We glorified the catastrophe to the extent that it resembled an epic love story. The tale of the Mary Celeste is less well known, but it nevertheless holds many people's attention.
A commercial ship named the Mary Celeste sailed from New York with a load of denatured alcohol and a crew of seven people on board. Another shift was found adrift several days after it set out. There was no one on board, the lifeboat was missing, the sails were rigged haphazardly, and all the hatches were open. The crew and the commander vanished without a trace.
Supplies were on board, the ship wasn't harmed, and the cargo was still there. If a catastrophe had occurred, there was no obvious indication of what it was or why it forced everyone to abandon a well-stocked ship that was not in immediate danger of sinking.
There was some water on deck, but not more than you might anticipate in a ship of its size, and there was a sounding rod there. There was speculation about everything from insurrection to natural disasters to fraud and pirates, but none of it was backed up by solid facts. The enigma persisted for more than a century.
A chemist proposed a proposal that, using some fascinating science, could resolve the enigma. Denatured alcohol, a highly flammable chemical, was the ship's cargo. It's likely that the alcohol in its barrels may have escaped and ignited, resulting in an explosion.
Normally, you'd assume that this would catch fire and leave the ship's debris everywhere. However, studies have revealed that's not always the case. A pressure wave explosion would erupt with a powerful enough blast to, for example, blow out the hatches and mess up the sails of the boat. However, a sudden rush of cool air would follow it, leaving no sign of soot behind.
Records indicate that more than 300 liters of alcohol were lost. The crew wasn't smuggling any booze because it couldn't be drunk. With that much material unsecured, one spark might have started it. The entire crew would have fled in fright if they had seen a terrifying fireball. They might have all drowned or been attacked by sharks while in the sea. Never was the lifeboat located.
