For over a century and a half, the story of the merchant ship ‘Mary Celeste’ remains one of the greatest maritime mysteries. In December 1872, the British crew of the ship ‘Dei Gratia’ discovered this American sailing vessel adrift in the open sea near the Azores. There was no one on board, even though the ship showed no visible damage, and the cargo remained untouched in the hold.
This is reported by Finway
New Theory on the Fate of the ‘Mary Celeste’ Crew
According to researchers, the ‘Mary Celeste’ was carrying 1,700 barrels of ethanol from New York to Genoa. After the disappearance of all 10 people on board, including Captain Benjamin Briggs with his family and crew, numerous attempts were made to explain what had happened. Among the theories were possible pirate attacks, outbreaks of an unknown disease, or even alien intervention. However, new research points to a more grounded, yet no less dramatic cause.
“Now scientists believe they have the solution to this mystery, and the cause of the crew’s demise may have been an explosion of alcohol vapors.”
During the historical examination of the ship, it was found that 9 barrels of ethanol were empty. It is likely that the alcohol evaporated, and vapors accumulated in the enclosed hold, especially after the crew closed the hatches during a storm. Scientists remind us that the flash point of ethanol is only 13 degrees Celsius. When the ship left the cold waters near the U.S. and entered the warmer areas of the Atlantic, the amount of vapors sharply increased. It only took a spark, for example, from a pipe or metal friction, to cause an explosion.
Experimental Verification of the Hypothesis
Researchers from the University of Manchester created a scaled-down model of the ship to test this hypothesis. During the experiment, no explosion occurred at low temperatures; however, after heating the atmosphere to levels typical for the area near the Azores, a spark triggered a powerful flash of ethanol vapors. The explosion caused the hatches to open and the deck to deform, but left no traces of fire or charring of the wood.
Scientists assert that such an explosion creates a spherical blue flame with temperatures exceeding 2000 degrees Celsius, lasting only a few seconds and leaving no signs of fire. This could have frightened the crew so much that they hastily abandoned the ship, possibly transferring to a lifeboat or even jumping into the water in panic. Unfortunately, the fate of the people remains tragic: they all likely perished in the ocean.
Thus, scientists believe that the solution to the mystery of the ‘Mary Celeste’ lies in the accidental explosion of ethanol vapors in the hold, which forced the crew to abandon the ship, leaving it without people, cargo, and signs of fire.