It's impossible to know the exact number of missing ships, but estimates suggest millions of shipwrecks lie on the ocean floor, with around 3 million total wrecks including ancient and modern vessels, many undiscovered. Annually, hundreds of vessels are lost, with figures like 729 large vessel losses globally between 2014-2023, though some disappear entirely without a trace, like those in mysterious areas such as the Bermuda Triangle.
It is estimated that there are over three million shipwrecks worldwide! Less than 1% of these wrecks have actually been explored.
On average, about 80 ships sink globally per year (2013–2022). The 1990s saw 200+ ships lost annually; today, it's down by ~75%. Asia-Pacific is the top hotspot with 184 losses (2014–2023). The Eastern Mediterranean & Black Sea reported 115 losses in the same period.
The Bermuda triangle, also known as the “Devil's Triangle,' is in the western part of the North Atlantic Ocean and covers an area roughly the size of the state of Alaska. It is notorious for the many ships and planes that mysteriously disappear within its boundaries.
San José was a 64-gun galleon of the Spanish Navy. It was launched in 1698 and sank in battle off Barú Island, just south of Cartagena, Colombia, in 1708, while laden with gold, silver and emeralds worth about US$17 billion as of 2023.
Flor de la Mar
Upon her return after the campaign in 1511, the leaky ship sank in a storm off the coast of Sumatra. She was said to be laden with riches equivalent to over $2 billion for the Portuguese king. Treasure hunters have spent millions attempting to find the wreckage but so far all have been in vain.
As of 2024, only three of the twelve boxes have been found.
According to data from the 2019 United States Census, people who are Black or African American make up 13.4% of the United States population (QuickFacts). However, nearly 40% of missing persons are people of color (“Statistics,” Black and Missing). Black children make up about 33% of all missing child cases.
The Most Notoriously Dangerous Seas and Oceans
Most of the ocean remains unexplored (around 80-95%) due to its immense size, extreme darkness, near-freezing temperatures, crushing pressure (over 1,000 times surface pressure in the deep), and the high cost and technological challenges of developing specialized equipment to withstand these harsh, hostile conditions. Sunlight can't penetrate far, visibility is near zero, and deep-sea life is adapted to pressure that would crush most vessels, making direct human study difficult and expensive.
The answer is yes, most cruise ships do have some form of detention facility on board, commonly known as a “brig”. These facilities are typically small rooms located in the lower decks of the ship and are used to detain passengers or crew members who have broken the law or violated the ship's rules and regulations.
On average, there are two cases each month. Survival rates after falling overboard are low, ranging from 17% to 25%.
Cruise ships use secret codes like "Code Alpha" (medical emergency), "Code Bravo" (fire), and "Code Oscar/Mr. MOB" (man overboard) to alert crew without alarming passengers, with other codes indicating security threats ("Charlie"), ship damage ("Delta"), or crew mustering ("Kilo"), though meanings can vary by cruise line and specific phrases like "Code Mufasa" (missing child on Disney) or upside-down pineapples (swinging) exist as well.
The Greatest Lost Shipwrecks Yet To Be Discovered
The limit of our eyes' power to resolve objects is generally taken to be about 1 arc minute (1/60°). This means that the largest ships, which have a width of about 60 metres, should remain visible to at least 200 kilometres.
While the Atlantic Ocean may have the largest total number of shipwrecks, Lake Erie has one of the highest concentrations and densities of shipwrecks in the world, more than any other single body of water on Earth.
Eight scary sea creatures that really exist
As long as you don't go too deep, it's safer. There is no particular place along the ocean (or the gulf) that is better or “safer” than another.
When you think of top ocean predators, you probably think of sharks. Great white sharks, to be exact. But the true ruler of the sea is the killer whale.
While it's hard to definitively name the single longest missing child globally due to varying records, Marjorie West, who vanished in 1938 at age 4 in Pennsylvania, USA, holds a strong claim as a very long-term missing child, missing for over 87 years, representing a case that spans decades without resolution. Other prominent long-term cases include Mary Boyle, missing from Ireland since 1977, and Nicole Morin, missing from Canada since 1985, highlighting the enduring mystery in these and countless other unsolved disappearances.
There were 574 victims of kidnapping/abduction recorded in Australia in 2024, an increase of 75 victims from the previous year. The victimisation rate for kidnapping/abduction remained stable at 2 victims per 100,000 persons.
The targets of hate crime
Of the 11,679 hate crimes reported: 5,866 were on the basis of race. 3,004 against Black people. 797 against Latinx people (the second highest ever recorded).
After digging a few dozen holes, a small ceramic box was found containing an emerald. At the time, it was worth around $500. Currently, the emerald would be worth around $1,500.
Though Stuef wasn't sure at first if he'd keep the treasure, he ultimately decided to sell it. Fenn even linked him up with potential buyers before he died and, in a November 2022 update on Medium, Stuef announced that he had indeed sold the treasure in a private transaction.