I love stories about pirates and lost treasure.  It started with my dad reading me Treasure Island when I was growing up. But, when it comes to swashbuckling tales of sunken treasure - this may take the cake.  What gives this new story the distinct advantage?  It's a true story of lost ships in the Caribbean, unknown cargo, astronauts, and a secret map.

Astronaut Gordon Cooper was quite the spaceman.  He broke lots of records, including the longest single-man space flight for a mind-blowing 122-hour mission.  What do you do with all of that time?  Surely eating space-food would get old after a while, and after you master going to the bathroom - you've got a lot of free time on your hands.  Gordon decided to grab a seat, and watch one of the most fascinating shows most mortals miss out on.

NASA Goddard Photo and Video, Flickr
NASA Goddard Photo and Video, Flickr
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If you squint, you can see all of the reality shows at once.

What our devilishly observant star-man found is surely the next chapter in a story that began with skulls, crossbones, and possibly a man with a hook and an eye-patch.  He noticed anomalies in the waters of the Caribbean.  He believed these anomalies to be undisturbed shipwrecks.  Mr. Cooper meticulously logged and charted his discovery in secret, and truly believed it to be a map leading to vast riches in both archaeological finds, and in gold.

Sadly, Gordon Cooper passed away in 2004 due to complications from Parkinson's.  Like any good story about lost shipwrecks and possible treasure, Gordon passed the secret map to his friend Darrell Miklos and asked him to continue his quest.

How does the story end?  Surely Mr. Milkos is dripping in Spanish gold and has wings of museums named after him, right?  Not just yet, but you're in luck!  The Discovery Channel has pledged to document the expedition for us all to watch with a documentary that started last night.

So there you have it.  The cold war, sunken ships, a secret treasure map from space, and adventure - this story has it all!

 

 

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