Are ghost ships real? - Peter B. Campbell

譯者: Yi-Leng Su 審譯者: 瑞文Eleven 林Lim

One foggy morning in 1884,

1884 年，一個煙霧迷漫的早晨

the British steamer "Rumney" crashed into the French ship "Frigorifique."

英國蒸氣船羅姆尼號（Rumney）

撞到法國船隻菲格理企號 （Frigorifique）

Seeing their ship filling with water,

眼看水不斷湧進羅菲格理企號

the French crew climbed aboard the "Rumney."

法國船員於是逃至羅姆尼號上

But as they sailed towards the nearest port,

但在他們向附近港口航行的途中

a silent form suddenly emerged from the fog:

霧中不聲不響地出現一個陰影

the abandoned "Frigorifique."

是剛剛被遺棄的菲格理企號

It was too late to turn,

但他們已經來不及轉彎

and the impact was enough to sink the "Rumney."

衝擊力道讓羅姆尼號沉沒

As the sailors scrambled into the lifeboats,

當水手倉促逃上救生艇

the empty "Frigorifique" sailed back into the fog,

無人的菲格理企號又在霧中消失

having seemingly taken its revenge.

如同復仇完畢一般

In reality, the French sailors had left the engines running,

實際上，由於法國水手 棄船時並未關掉動力

and the "Frigorifique" sailed in a circle before striking the "Rumney"

於是菲格理企號繼續繞圈子， 再次撞上羅姆尼號

and finally sinking.

最後沉入海裡

But its story became one of the many tales of ghost ships,

這個故事成了幽靈船傳說

unmanned vessels that apparently sail themselves.

幽靈船就是那些無人操控、 自己航行的船隻

And although they've influenced works like "Dracula"

幽靈船的傳說影響了《德古拉》

and "Pirates of the Caribbean,"

和《加勒比海盜》等等作品

crewless ships aren't the product of ghostly spirits,

但幽靈船其實沒有鬼魅在操控

just physics at work.

只是物理學的作用

One of the most famous ghost ships was the "Mary Celeste"

著名的幽靈船瑪麗·賽勒斯特號 （Mary Celeste）

found sailing the Atlantic in 1872 with no one aboard,

1872年在大西洋被發現 船上空無一人

water in its hold,

船身進水

and lifeboats missing.

救生艇也不見了

The discovery of its intact cargo and a captain's log that ended abruptly

貨物完好無損，但船長的 航海日誌突然地結束了

led to wild rumors and speculation.

這引起了各種流言和猜測

But the real culprits were two scientific phenomena:

幽靈船的幕後黑手 其實是兩個科學現象：

buoyancy

浮力

and fluid dynamics.

和流體動力學

Here's how buoyancy works.

浮力如何作用?

An object placed in a liquid displaces a certain volume of fluid.

物體沒入液體中的體積 等同它所排開的液體體積

The liquid in turn exerts an upward buoyant force

液體會對物體施加向上的浮力

equal to the weight of the fluid that's been displaced.

浮力的大小等於所排開的液體重量

This phenomenon is called Archimedes's Principle.

這是阿基米德原理

Objects that are less dense than water,

密度低於水的物體

such as balsa wood,

如輕木、

icebergs,

冰山、

and inflatable rafts

和充氣筏

always float.

永遠浮著

That's because the upward buoyant force

這是因為向上的浮力

is always stronger than the downward force of gravity.

總是大於向下的重力

But for objects or ships to float when they're made of materials, like steel,

若製造浮體的材料，密度比水大， 例如船隻以鋼鐵為原料

that are denser than water,

they must displace a volume of water larger than their weight.

它們就必須排開大於自身重量的液體

Normally, the water filling a ship's hull would increase its weight

通常船身進水時會增加它的重量

and cause it to sink -

使其下沉

just what the "Mary Celeste's" crew feared when they abandoned ship.

瑪麗·賽勒斯特號的船員 當時會棄船也是這個原因

But the sailors didn't account for fluid dynamics.

但水手沒有想到流體動力學

The water stopped flowing at the point of equilibrium,

當船內部的水深跟破洞等高時

when it reached the same level as the hull.

就達到平衡，不會湧進更多的水

As it turned out, the weight of the water wasn't enough to sink the ship

事實證明，水的重量沒有造成沉船

and the "Mary Celeste" was found a few days later

瑪麗·賽勒斯特號幾天後被人發現

while the unfortunate crew never made it to shore.

但不幸船員無人生還

Far stranger is the tale of "A. Ernest Mills,"

更神秘的是 A 歐內斯特·米爾號 （A. Ernest Mills）的傳聞

a schooner transporting salt,

那是一艘運送鹽的雙桅帆船

whose crew watched it sink to the sea floor following a collision.

在碰撞之後，船員看著它沉入海底

Yet four days later, it was spotted floating on the surface.

然而四天之後有人發現它浮在水面上

The key to the mystery lay in the ship's heavy cargo of salt.

解開這個謎題的關鍵就是船上的鹽

The added weight of the water in the hull made the vessel sink,

湧進的水增加了船隻的重量並讓它沉沒

but as the salt dissolved in the water,

但隨著鹽溶解

the weight decreased enough

重量逐漸減輕

that the force of gravity became less than the buoyant force

直到重力小於浮力

and the ship floated back to the surface.

於是船又浮起來了

But how do we explain the most enduring aspect of ghost ship legends:

但要如何解釋幽靈船 傳說中流傳最久遠的一項：

multiple sightings of the same ships hundreds of miles and several years apart?

為何會在好幾年後、 幾百哩以外的地方看到同一艘船？

The answer lies in ocean currents,

答案就是洋流

which are like invisible rivers flowing through the ocean.

洋流就像海中隱形的河流一般

Factors, like temperature,

溫度

salinity,

鹽度

wind,

風

gravity,

and the Coriolis effect from the Earth's rotation

重力

和地球自轉所形成的科氏力等等因素

create a complex system of water movement.

造就了複雜的洋流系統

That applies both at the ocean's surface and deep below.

這些因素不僅影響海面， 也影響了深層的海水

Sailors have always known about currents,

很久以前，水手就知道洋流的存在

but their patterns weren't well known until recently.

但一直到最近才比較了解 洋流的流動規則

In fact, tracking abandoned ships was how scientists determined the shape

實際上，科學家一開始 就是追蹤廢棄船隻

and speed of the Atlantic Gyre,

才了解大西洋環流、

the Gulf Stream,

墨西哥灣流等

and related currents in the first place.

及相關洋流的方向和速度

Beginning in 1883, the U.S. Hydrographic Office

自 1883 年起

美國水文局開始逐月收集數據

began collecting monthly data that included navigation hazards,

像是藉由經過的船隻

like derelict ships, whose locations were reported by passing vessels.

回報影響航安的廢棄船隻位置

So abandoned ships may not be moved by ghost crews or supernatural curses,

沒有幽靈或超自然現象 操控這些廢棄船隻

but they are a real and fascinating phenomenon

幽靈船是依靠一股生於海中

born through the ocean

強大、無形的科學力量

and kept afloat by powerful, invisible, scientifically studied forces.

得以塑造出這些真實而迷人的傳說