Titanic'smirage, part 3: A case of mistaken identity, low‐lying distress rockets and ‘miraging’ star glitters

Abstract

This article (the third of four articles that look into the Titanic mirage theory) presents eyewitness accounts of the Titanic's distress rockets and the appearance of the stricken liner and compares them with the ways mirages manifest themselves. It is argued here that flickering lights and twinkling stars could have made the signals from Morse lamps undetectable. However, they do not indicate the certain presence of super refraction. The presence of a mirage cannot be ruled out; however, this investigation demonstrates that even if a mirage was present, it had no significant effect on any aspect of the tragedy.

The Titanic’s ‘low-lying’, silent distress rockets explained

“…14 Mila Zinkova dismissed this speculation in relation to the 'low-lying' rockets, noting that Maltin had demonstrated a complete lack of understanding of super-refraction. 15 Captain de Coverly's suggestion might have made sense because, in his estimation, the Titanic was below the horizon of the observers from the Californian. Maltin, on the other hand, stated that the distance between the Titanic and the Californian was 10 miles (16 kilometres).…”

Titanic’s mirage, part 4: How might currents have affected visibility and the rescue operation?

“…This article is the fourth of four articles that discuss the Titanic mirage theory. In the previous parts we discussed the synoptic situation, the mysterious haze, low‐lying distress rockets and ‘miraging’ star glitters amongst other topics (Zinkova, ,b,c).…”