The tragic Air France plane disaster over the Atlantic Ocean in June has provided a stark reminder of man's vulnerability to the elements.

It is hard to imagine investigators will be able to find the all important black box in such a large expanse of water, as this would provide crucial answers to what actually happened.

In fact in such a sad time for the families many people will speculate about what happened, with speculation ranging from freak weather to talk of alien abductions.

The element of mystery surrounding the crash prompted some commentators to compare the event to the phenomenon of the Bermuda Triangle, which is a region in the western part of the North Atlantic Ocean.

The Bermuda Triangle has allegedly been the cause of a number of planes and ships disappearing in mysterious circumstances. There is a large amount of evidence to support the fact some of these incidents have been inaccurately reported or exaggerated, but some accidents and disappearances remain unexplained despite thorough investigation. However, the US Navy does not believe the Bermuda Triangle exists and apparently Lloyd's of London, the world's leading market for specialist insurance, does not charge higher premiums for vessels travelling in this area.

Many people like a mystery and there were cases of ships or aircraft going missing in the area, which were never recovered.

In 1918 the USS Cyclops disappeared in the region probably after sinking in an unexpected storm, but no trace of the ship was ever found.

In December 1945 a radio message intercepted from the aircraft of Flight 19 indicated that the pilot was uncertain of his position and that the aircraft was experiencing malfunction of its compasses.

The flight disappeared with the assumption that it ran out of fuel and crashed in to the sea, but again no traces of the plane were found.

These disappearances and others have been cited as evidence of the supernatural qualities of the Bermuda Triangle.

The case of Flight 19 added to the theory that the Bermuda Triangle is one of the two places on earth at which a magnetic compass points towards true north, as opposed to the normal reading of magnetic north, but this has not been the case since the 19th century.

The Gulf Stream is a factor in accidents around this area, as it is extremely turbulent and can very easily sweep away evidence of an accident.

These days radio communication is much more sophisticated and reliable, so one would expect to receive some news of trouble ahead. Also we can detect problems with the weather in terms of storms and hurricanes earlier than would have been the case years ago.

However, accidents such as the Air France loss over the Atlantic prove that for all the technology we now have, there are always elements to catch us by surprise.

Supernatural explanations provide talking points, but they are unlikely to have any credence.

We will always be vulnerable to the power of the weather, and it is unfortunate that sometimes Mother Nature is clever at covering up the evidence.