The scientist solves the mystery of ‘Summerville Ghost’ of South Carolina that is terrified local since the 1950s
A scientist believes that she has resolved the mystery of decades of a disturbing ghost in a city in South Carolina.
Since the 1950s, people in Summerville, South Carolina, have told stories of a ghost that invents abandoned railways near prior prior Sheep Island Street, known locally as previously prior to the prior Gentle Street.
The legend Cube that a man who worked or traveling on the railroad was hit by a train and killed, and after his death, his wife began to disturb the area, walking with a flashlight.
People have claimed to see a spooky brightness floating on the clues and strange lights apparently floating in the air that sometimes rush towards them or grow in size.
The lights are generally described as small, in the form of a ball and blue or green, although sometimes red or white balls have been witnessed.
The locals also claim to have seen cars, hitting doors and whispered voices that are heard without a source near houses and buildings that run along the railway line.
While the history of the ghost has persisted, Dr. Susan Hough, geophysics in the earthquake risk program, believes that a Pure explanation can be the reason for the paranormal activity.
In 2023, the scientist and a colleague “discovered a twist on the roads of the South Carolina Railway” that indicated that they could have been built along a failure line and the places that people cube see in reality are side effects are side effects of minor earthquakes.
Since the 1950s, people claim to have seen a spooky shine floating on an abandoned railway line in the nearby forest near the old light road
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While studying the Seismology of the area, he discovered a book that went into details about an earthquake of 6.6 to 7.3 magnitude that occurred on September 1, 1886 in the nearby Charleston.
According to the New York Times, a historical story of the event throughout the country explained how a railway line south of Summerville had moved by about 15 feet, indicating that it had been built on a earthquake failure line.
Dr. Hough said Science: ‘There were newspaper articles on the Summerville light. And books like Haunted Summerville. I didn’t think much.
‘Then last October (2024) a USGS bulletin published a small characteristic in spooky science. That made me think about ghost stories again. And some of the details have just shout earthquake phenomena.
He explained that the tremor of the cars could be due to ‘earthquakes with a shallow source’ or tremors that occur within 40 miles on the earth’s surface.
Similarly, Dr. Hugh believes that the bright orbs that people claim to be a flashlight transported by a ghost could actually be ‘earthquake lights’.
The earthquake lights are optical phenomena that appear in the sky near the areas of seismic activity.
Natural phenomena, such as sheet rays, a brilliant flash in the sky during an earthquake, can be seen light balls, serpentines and constant glitters in association with earthquakes.
While scientists are not clear about what causes earthquake lights, Dr. Hugh theorizes that it is due to the release of Gasoline from the Earth.
She explained that the tremor of the cars could be due to ‘earthquakes with a shallow source’
Dr. Hugh told Science: ‘It turns out that they are everywhere. Lights have been reported in Wilmington and other parts of the Carolinas.
‘Maybe those “ghosts” are illuminating shallow active failures. They are impossible to study, because you cannot catch them on the spot. But there are plausible theories that could explain them.
She theorizes the shallow earthquakes in the area could have released a water soluble gasoline such as the radon or methane that was lit by a static electricity spark or rock movement and turned into earthquake lights.
In addition, its theory also suggests that lights could be caused by the ignition of flammable gases, since they are exposed to oxygen.
“The association between ghosts and railways made me think of sparks,” Dr. Hough continued. “But the association could have a different explanation, for example, the trend of the railroads to follow corridors that were carved by failures.”
Similarly, Dr. Hugh believes that the bright orbs that people claim to be a flashlight that is carried by a ghost could be ‘earthquake lights’
‘Historically, when (Rail Companies) replaced clues, they did not always transport the old track.
‘Then, you have lots of steel out there. The sparks can be part of the story.
‘And maybe the railroads are important for another reason. Naturally, they can follow the failures that have carved runners through the landscape, ” he said.
As for the noises heard by the locals, they could be accredited to high frequency agitation noises resulting from tremors.
“Sound waves at frequencies of 20–200 Hz are within the audible range,” Hough wrote in the study.
A 20-200 Hz sound is considered low frequency and falls within the auditionable hearing range for humans.
‘The studies also suggest that the infrasonic noise, that is, at frequencies below 20 Hz, can cause notable sensations.
‘The senses of the Charleston earthquake of 1886, for example, were sometimes informed as “detonations”, suggesting high frequency energy of a surface and close source.
“I hope that ghost stories can provide a useful objective for research, both to understand the earthquake lights and to identify shallow active failures in East North America.”
