If nobody could hear you, would you still exist? Would you have had a piece of your own history in this vast earth? If whales can think and contemplate, then these are probably the existential questions that the 52-Hertz whale thinks of. Floating in the endless waters, he is the loneliest whale in our blue planet.
If you have ever listened to the sound of a whale (which you can do online), you will know what it sounds like. These whales call at a frequency of 15 and 25 Hertz. However, the 52-Hertz whale, which is an individual whale, calls at a frequency of 52 Hertz., which is simply off the charts. The calling of this whale is so unique that experts believe that other whales are not able to hear him. People are fascinated by the 52-Hertz, its world is still quite unknown to humans, but for many, its story is quite relatable.
The story of the 52-Hertz whale dates back to the Cold War days, when US military hydrophones on the ocean floor picked up a sound. The hydrophones were attempting to listen to Soviet submarines, but instead picked up this strange noise of whales. After the end of the Cold War, when whale researchers were given access to the hydrophone network, William Watkins, an expert in the field, noticed one unique sound out of many. It was unlike the sounds made by the blue whales, and fin whales. Thus began the hunt for the 52-Hertz whale.
Could it be that the whale is lonely due to human folly? As it is now understood that numerous such whales are in fact leading a solitary life as cargo ships create an unhappy living environment for them? The sounds of these commercial ships are drowning the sound of many such whales who are lost in the endless sea.
