Editing USS Cyclops (section)

===Possible explanations===
[[File:USS Cyclops map by US Weather Bureau.png|thumb|right|A map prepared by the [[United States Weather Bureau|U.S. Weather Bureau]] and published in the June 1929 issue of ''[[Popular Science Monthly]]'', showing weather conditions at the time the ''Cyclops'' was lost]]

As ''Cyclops'' disappeared during World War I, and submarines of the [[Imperial German Navy]] were known to operate in the [[West Indies]], the ship being lost due to hostile action was considered.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/new-york-tribune-fear-cyclops-was-submar/137871248/ |title=Fear Cyclops Was Submarine Victim |newspaper=[[New-York Tribune]] |page=4 |date=June 5, 1918 |accessdate=January 1, 2024 |via=newspapers.com}}</ref> However, the German navy denied any involvement, or having even seen ''Cyclops'', both during and after the war.<ref name="Strange"/>

Reports indicate that on 10 March, the day after ''Cyclops'' was rumored to have been sighted by ''Amolco,'' a violent storm swept through the [[Virginia Capes]] area. While some suggest that the combination of the overloaded condition, engine trouble, and bad weather may have conspired to sink ''Cyclops,''<ref name="Strange" /> an extensive naval investigation concluded: "Many theories have been advanced, but none that satisfactorily accounts for her disappearance."<ref name="bermuda-triangle.org" /> This summation was written, however, before two of ''Cyclops''{{'}}s [[sister ship]]s, {{USS|Proteus|AC-9|2}} and {{USS|Nereus|AC-10|2}}, vanished at sea during [[World War II]] less than a year after their sale to civilian operators. Both ships were transporting heavy loads of metallic ore similar to that which was loaded on ''Cyclops'' during her fatal voyage. In both cases, their loss was theorized to have been the result of catastrophic structural failure,<ref>[http://familyheritage.ca/Articles/merchant1.html Canadian Merchant Ship Losses of the Second World War, 1939–1945]</ref> but a more outlandish theory attributes all three vessels' disappearances to the [[Bermuda Triangle]].<ref>Eyers, Jonathan (2011). ''Don't Shoot the Albatross!: Nautical Myths and Superstitions.'' A&C Black, London, UK. {{ISBN|978-1-4081-3131-2}}.</ref>

Rear Admiral George van Deurs suggested that the loss of ''Cyclops'' could be owing to structural failure, as her sister ships suffered from issues where the [[I-beam]]s that ran the length of the ship had eroded due to the corrosive nature of some of the cargo carried. This was observed definitively on {{USS|Jason|AC-12|6}}, and is believed to have contributed to the sinking of another similar freighter, ''Chuky,'' which snapped in two in calm seas. Moreover, ''Cyclops'' may have hit a storm with {{convert|30|-|40|kn|adj=on}} winds. These would have resulted in waves just far enough apart to leave the bow and stern supported on the peaks of successive waves, but with the middle unsupported, resulting in extra strain on the already weakened central area.<ref name="Without Trace">{{cite book|last=Harris|first=John|title=Without Trace|year=1981|publisher=Richard Clay ltd|location=Bungay, Suffolk|pages=179–182}}</ref>{{efn|In 1929, the ''Popular Science Monthly'' story research found that ''Cyclops'' had probably been lost in a storm. Separately, [[Larry Kusche]], author of ''The Bermuda Triangle Mystery – Solved'' (1975), came to the same conclusion.}}

For a [[BBC Radio 4]] documentary in 2009, [[Tom Mangold]] had an expert from [[Lloyd's of London|Lloyd's]] investigate the loss of ''Cyclops.'' The expert noted that manganese ore, being much denser than coal, had room to move within the holds even when fully laden, the hatch covers were canvas, and that when wet, the ore can become a slurry. As such, the load could shift and cause the ship to [[List (ship)|list]]. Combined with a possible loss of power from its one engine, it could founder in bad weather.<ref>Mangold, Tom ''Inside the Bermuda Triangle: the Mysteries Solved'' BBC Radio 4 2009.</ref>