Strange, inexplicable mystery on a deserted island: The Soviet Union tried to decode it but failed

Strange and inexplicable things have happened on the island of Barsa-Kelmes. What great secret does the thick fog surrounding the island hide?

Of the more than 1,000 large and small islands in the Aral Sea of ​​Central Asia, none is as mysterious and unusual as Barsa-Kelmes Island.

In the native Kazakh language, Barsa-Kelmes Island means "the island of no return" . What makes this island, which was once 133km2 wide ( as of 1980), become one of the most mysterious areas in the world, even though the Soviet Union once mobilized troops, planes and tanks to decode it, but all efforts have come to a dead end?

Unexplained Phenomena

Legend has it that in the 13th century, the people of the island of Barsa-Kelmes were forced to flee the island to escape the Mongols. After a short time, they returned to the island and were surprised to see a strange change, the landscape appeared as if decades had passed. In the end, the islanders only stayed on the strange island for a few months before moving to another place to settle.

Today, Barsa-Kelmes is largely deserted. The island's last inhabitants left decades ago.

In Barsa-Kelmes, people only see a strange land covered in thick fog, where strange, inexplicable things are said to happen. Strange things appear so often, that the residents living near the island call it "the door to another dimension".

Map of Barsa-Kelmes Island in 1853

Map of Barsa-Kelmes Island in 1853. (Source: Journal of the Royal Geographical Society of London).

Let's see what strange things happened on this island of no return.

At first, Barsa-Kelmes was said to be inhabited by strange creatures that seemed to have come from another dimension rather than from Earth. Locals claimed to have seen giant bird-like creatures flying around the island, or large sea serpents swimming in the waters around the island, and sometimes giant "sea monsters" with long necks looming in the thick fog.

Even all those who have ventured into the island have mysteriously disappeared. They never returned once they entered that "forbidden land".

Not only is it said to be home to giant, abnormal creatures that not only "swallow" people behind thick fog, Barsa-Kelmes island also disables all modern human devices.

As they approached the island, the clock suddenly stopped working, the compass was disabled, and the compass needle spun around, unable to orient itself. Even more astonishing, one felt that time sometimes passed very slowly, and sometimes passed very quickly.

Expedition tent on Barsa-Kelmes Island, 1848Expedition tent on Barsa-Kelmes Island, 1848.

One of the strange events that led to Soviet government intervention was an event that occurred in 1959.

After years of experiencing warmer seasons than the surrounding islands and regions, Barsa-Kelmes Island suffered a particularly harsh winter in 1959. Some of the native Kazakhs living near the island thought that Barsa-Kelmes might be an ideal place to freeze their fish catch, so they entered the area despite the warnings of the village chief.

However, the harsh winter passed and the warm spring came, but they still had not returned home. Relatives organized a large-scale search, but when many days passed without any sign of the missing people, they reported it to the authorities.

The Soviet Union took action to decode: Airplanes and tanks were mobilized, but the mystery remained a mystery.

The Soviet government then dispatched a helicopter to sweep the area, searching for the missing people on the island of Barsa-Kelmes. However, as the plane flew into thick fog, the instruments on board became disturbed and gradually failed, one by one. The two pilots were forced to make an emergency landing.

The last words that came over their radios as they reported the situation urgently were that they saw elliptical objects appearing vaguely in the thick fog. Immediately after that, the radio signal between the command base and the helicopters went completely silent.

After the helicopter completely "disappeared" in the thick fog of the strange island, the Soviet Union continued to mobilize a tank with a long cable attached, entering the strange island area.

The reconnaissance team on the tank was ordered to maintain constant communication while advancing into the dense fog. However, something strange and terrifying happened again. The radio signal went silent again after the tank entered the fog.

Illustration.

By the time the tank was pulled back with a cable, the inside was completely empty. The entire tank seemed to be covered in ice.

The suspected specimens were all taken to a modern laboratory in Moscow for examination, however, scientists did not find anything unusual, such as foreign substances, foreign objects or any important clues to serve the investigation.

When strange phenomena could not be explained within the thick fog on the island of Barsa-Kelmes, it was time for people to speculate about mysteries related to UFOs and alien bases.

Russian UFO researcher Vadim Chernobrov, after studying old documents related to unexplained phenomena at Barsa-Kelmes, believes that the fog is a shield protecting a secret base inside the island.

This fog has the ability to disable electronic devices, preventing unwanted intrusion from the outside.

Illustration.

What is the fate of those who have come to that island of no return now? What great secrets are hidden within the thick fog? Is Barsa-Kelmes Island an underground alien base, or is it a man-made creation to hide some great secret?... All of these questions have no satisfactory explanation.

Barsa-Kelmes, known as the " Bermuda Triangle " of Central Asia

The strange and unexplainable things happening on this island are not limited to ancient legends. In the second half of the 20th century, this place was considered "fertile ground" for modern conspiracy theories.

Reports of paranormal activity, including mysterious plane crashes and UFO sightings, have turned the island into Central Asia's own "Bermuda Triangle."

Publications such as the Soviet magazine “Tekhnika Molodyozhi” also published fascinating stories about the island during this time, including tales of time distortions, malfunctioning compasses, and UFO sightings. These stories were also often recounted by local fishermen, further fueling public fascination with Barsa-Kelmes.

Barsa-Kelmes of the present

Today, Barsa-Kelmes is no longer an isolated island, instead its landscape has been replaced by a barren desert, home to scorpions, spiders and snakes.

Despite the drastic changes in the terrain, locals still refer to the place as an 'island'. Barsa-Kelmes, although no longer in its original form, remains a place of some significance in the local consciousness.

Barsa-Kelmes Nature Reserve (established 1939), wildlife refuge on the island of Barsa-Kelmes.