By Tim Binnall
A border guard patrolling near a lake in Finland spotted a rather remarkable natural phenomenon: a 'ghost island.' The breathtaking sight reportedly appeared atop Lake Inari in the Lapland region of the country on Sunday. No doubt much to the surprise of the guard, it appeared as if a rather sizeable island had suddenly formed on the water.
Fortunately, they were able to photograph the amazing scene and subsequently posted it to their Twitter feed. As you may have surmised by now, the eerie 'island' was not a new body of land created by volcanic activity. Instead, it was actually an optical illusion formed by atmospheric conditions at the lake which cause bodies of land on the horizon to become distorted and appear dramatically different.
The incredible scene is somewhat reminiscent of folkloric tales of lost worlds which seemingly appear and vanish on a whim, leaving one to wonder if perhaps mirages like as the one seen on Lake Inari may explain such legendary stories.
Inarinjärvelläkin on joskus harvoin mahdollisuus nähdä kangastuksia. Papinsaaren edustalle on noussut uusi saari. Ivalon partio sai ilmiön ikuistettua kameralle kirkkaassa -25 C pakkassäässä. #ivalonraja #inarinjärvi pic.twitter.com/U7vXpZXOhl
— Lapin rajavartiosto (@lapinraja) February 23, 2019