Bizarre Weather: Electronic Fog

Electronic fog is an unproven phenomenon described by pilot Bruce Gernon. Bruce named the phenomenon after a supposed encounter with it in the Bermuda Triangle one afternoon in December 1970. Bruce claims that this electronic fog caused all of his navigational equipment to malfunction. He was so disoriented that he was unable to determine his location. If this phenomenon were real, it could explain the seemingly high number of disappearances in the Bermuda Triangle. However, many people believe that there is nothing unusual about the disappearances in the Bermuda Triangle, including the number of them.

The experience that led to Bruce Gernon coining the term "electronic fog" occurred on December 4, 1970. That afternoon, Bruce, his father and Chuck Lafayette took off in the Gernons' Beechcraft Bonanza A36 from Andros in the Bahamas en route to Miami, Florida. Weather forecasts predicted clear skies and smooth flying. There was nothing in the forecast about fogs, electronic or otherwise.

Not long after leaving Andros, Bruce Gernon noticed a low-lying lenticular cloud. He says the cloud looked normal, but it was lower than any he had ever seen. Radio controllers assured him that skies were still clear. Nonetheless, Bruce says he watched as the cloud went from a low-lying lenticular cloud to a large cumulus cloud. Bruce says he then attempted to climb over the cloud at a rate of 1,000 feet per minute, but that the cloud grew as fast as he was climbing. After roughly 10 minutes, he managed to get past the cloud. Looking back, he judged it to be about 20 miles long.

Soon after getting by the first cloud, Bruce saw a second cloud that was similar, but seemed to originate from the ground and go up roughly 60,000 feet. He flew into the cloud. He says that inside the cloud there was no rain and it was very dark. He saw bright white flashes that were not lightning. Visibility within the cloud was four to five miles. He attempted to exit the cloud by going due south. He estimated his time in the air at about 27 minutes when he concluded that both of the clouds he had encountered were in fact one large donut-shaped cloud that had formed rapidly. He had flown about 13 miles after making that observation when he saw something that would lead him to electronic fog.

Bruce Gernon saw a u-shaped opening ahead of him. He watched as the opening in the u joined, forming a tunnel. He estimated that the tunnel was about one mile across and roughly 10 miles long. He says that he and his companions could see blue skies through the tunnel. The tunnel was getting smaller, so Bruce increased his speed. Once inside, the tunnel continued to get smaller, but it also appeared shorter. Bruce says that the tunnel was now only one mile long. He estimates that it took him 20 seconds to get through the tunnel, at which time he entered the electronic fog.

When he got through, he radioed what he thought was his location-near the Bimini Islands in the Bahamas. The controller said that there were no planes in that area. Confused, Bruce looked around him, but all he could see was gray fog. His navigational equipment had ceased to work. Bruce associated the malfunctions with the electronic fog (hence the term "electronic fog"). He could not see the sky, land, ocean or horizon. While in the fog, radio control informed him that they had spotted a plane over Miami Beach, Florida. Bruce told the controller that he should be somewhere near the Bimini Islands. Then, the electronic fog began to break in a way that Bruce Gernon called an "electronic fashion." Horizontal lines of blue skies appeared which eventually joined. The fog had vanished and Bruce Gernon found himself over Miami Beach- just as the controller had said.

Bruce has since shared his experience with others, including his claim that the flight only lasted 47 minutes, when it should have taken about 30 minutes longer. This story has led Bruce and others to refer to the cloud he entered as a "timestorm" and the tunnel a "tunnel vortex." Bruce believes that the tunnel took him through "100 miles of space and 30 minutes of time in little more than three minutes." It is important to note that some very prominent scientists believe that time travel is possible, at least in theory. However, there is no way to determine if electronic fog and tunnel vortexes that muck up navigation and send you through time and space rapidly exist.

To some, the Bermuda Triangle is the mystery of all mysteries. It is a menacing area of ocean that has claimed the lives of hundreds, if not thousands of people. To others, it is an area of ocean that is predictably dangerous, given the location and its weather that is hyped up by people who perpetuate the myth by telling stories about UFOs and electronic fog. Even Bruce Gernon, a seemingly sincere man, has claimed to see numerous UFOs. So, is it possible that UFOs and weather phenomena are attracted to him? Maybe and maybe not. Either way, we may never know. There have been only two other cases of this electronic fog being reported and the reports are dubious at best. The first comes from Christopher Columbus. The second comes from Charles Lindbergh. What makes them dubious is that these accounts could simply be looked at a certain way to fit the electronic fog story.

Sources

Bruce Gernon, retrieved 7/31/10, bermudatriangle.org/html/bruce_gernon.html

A New Explanation for an Enduring Enigma, retrieved 7/31/10, electronicfog.com

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