How does an entire island appear out of nowhere and then vanish without a trace?
A small island unexpectedly appeared in Williston Lake, a reservoir in northern British Columbia.
According to The New York Times, the body of water is well mapped, with each piece of land marked and known to boaters.
Apparently, all except for one.
Video being shared on social media shows a small green, woody island that had never been seen in the middle of the lake.
Many thought it was the work of artificial intelligence, including the spokesman for BC Hydro, which operates the reservoir and nearby dam.
But an engineer with the government-owned utility company got satellite imagery of the reservoir that showed the island.
On July 21, the island was 150 yards long and 75 yards wide, or about one and a half times the size of a football field, not counting the end zones.
But where did it come from?
BC Hydro spokesman Bob Gammer told the Times, “One possible explanation that seems fairly credible is that it formed from logs and woody debris. The logs and woody debris accumulated over many years in a sheltered shoreline area.”
“You can imagine that over time, even there, trees could be growing on that floating surface of logs,” he said. “Eventually it starts to sort of knit itself together.”
He said it could have broken from the shoreline and the wind carried it to the spot.
Then came the next short-lived mystery: the island disappeared.
The BBC said it was not seen on a satellite image from Aug. 5.
Gammer said, “Did it sink to the bottom? Did it break up? Are there small bits of it floating around?” he asked. “Or did the winds nestle it up against another part of the shoreline?”
But those possible questions were answered by a simple text on Aug. 31.
Gammer said he got a message which read: “We have just found the island!” He said it was about 20 miles northwest of where it was last seen.
The BBC reported that satellite images and pilots flying in the area confirmed the new location.
Gammer also had a message for anyone who wanted to explore the appearing-disappearing-reappearing island: Don’t set foot on it.
“Stay off the island. It could break apart,” he told the BBC.