Some people believe clairvoyants such as Nostradamus or Baba Vanga and their predictions, while others tend to look to the Mayan calendar or predictions from well-known almanacs to gain an insight into what awaits us this year.
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In Thailand, people seem to be superstitious and associate the finding of a certain type of fish with impending doom.
The fish is rarely seen
As reported by metro.co.uk, fishermen in the Andaman Sea caught a so-called oarfish, which is also known as the 'fish of doomsday' or 'harbinger of doom'.
It is said that humans rarely see the fish; this is due to its habitat. The website American Oceans writes the following:
The rudderfish is a pelagic fish that lives in the open ocean at depths from the surface to over 3,000 feet. It is most commonly found in the mesopelagic zone, i.e. the layer of water that extends from 660 to 3,300 feet below the surface.
As metro.co.uk further reports, the sighting of such a fish 'means, according to Japanese tradition, that an earthquake or tsunami is imminent'. But there are also other explanations.
Several 'unusual fish sightings' recently
Marine ecologist Thō̜n Thamrongnāwāsawat has a much less fatalistic explanation for why the fishermen suddenly had an oarfish on the hook and why this is not necessarily a bad sign:
Recently, the cold water entering the Andaman Sea has led to unusual fish sightings due to the Indian Ocean dipole. Earlier, a mola mola was caught in a net, and now an anglerfish. It is plausible that these fish follow the cold water mass. Even when unusual events occur in the ocean, it helps to understand the context to avoid unnecessary alarm.
The Verisk website writes the following about the general risk of an earthquake in Thailand:
Thailand is prone to natural disasters such as floods, droughts, tropical storms and forest fires, but weak to moderate earthquakes (below 6.0) are also not uncommon, and the risk of earthquakes should not be underestimated.
This article has been translated from Gentside DE.
Read more:
⋙ Terrifying deep sea fish caught that might be a sign of 'bad times' in future
⋙ Scientists discover a hole at the bottom of the ocean and it could have damaging consequences
⋙ Death by piranha: Did Kim Jong-un really execute a general with these deadly fish?
Sources used:
metro.co.uk:Weird 'doomsday fish' sparks fears of impending natural disaster
American Oceans: Oarfish
