Loch Ness monster ‘spotted on sonar’ again as mysterious shape detected 182m below surface

Has the Loch Ness monster been spotted again? A mysterious shape in the depths of the Scottish lake has been spotted on sonar, it’s claimed.

The Loch Ness monster may have been spotted on sonar after a mysterious shape was detected 182m below the surface, it’s claimed.

The image, captured by retired skipper Rod Michie, 77, has emerged just a month after a similar sighting.

He has spoken about his find after two images were captured in October by Ronald Mackenzie aboard his Spirit of Loch Ness tourist boat.

The image appeared to show either a 10m-long Nessie, or simply a large school of fish.

Mr Michie’s image was recorded on the Jacobite Queen in June 2015 off Urquhart Castle – said to be a favourite haunt of Nessie’s – at a depth of around 228m.

A sonar image that it’s claimed shows Nessie the Loch Ness monster. Picture: Northpix

He decided to come forward with his sonar image, saying: “I used to see surprising things visually or by sonar, but every time there was a logical explanation.

“But this contact was different. It really is unexplained. I passed over this point many times later but never saw anything again.

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This image taken in 1934 by Colonel Robert Kenneth Wilson was later revealed to have been a staged fake.

“I also know Ronald Mackenzie well and he is a genuine guy. There is something unexplained down there. My guess is that it is big eel – 20-30ft (6-10m) long.

“The equipment is improving all the time and that is most likely to solve the mystery of Nessie.

“I saw things over the years that I did not want to make a lot of for fear of ridicule, but this sighting in 2015 was very similar to Ronald’s.”

The image, if it does show the Loch Ness monster, would indicate the creature is around 33ft long. Picture: Northpix

Rod Michie captured the image in 2015 but is only speaking out about it now. Picture: Northpix

NESSIE ‘SIGHTING’

Mr Michie has wondered if his image was possibly the lost model of Nessie, which was used during the filming of 1970s movie The Private Life Of Sherlock Holmes.

That was finally located in 2016 by leading sonar expert Craig Wallace, who has said he is willing to come to Loch Ness with sophisticated sonar equipment to try to find what was inhabiting the depths.

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Urquhart Castle at Loch Ness is apparently a favourite haunt of Nessie’s. Picture: iStock

Nessie expert Steve Feltham, who has set a world record for the longest vigil of looking for the Loch Ness monster, said Mr Mackenzie’s sonar images are the “most compelling” evidence of the existence of the legendary creature.

The monster is said to be worth $74 million to the region in tourism income.

Irish missionary St Columba is first said to have encountered a beast in the River Ness in 565AD.

Among the most famous claimed sightings is a photograph taken in 1934 by Colonel Robert Kenneth Wilson.

The image was later exposed as a hoax by one of the participants, Chris Spurling, who, on his deathbed, revealed that the pictures were staged.

There have been 10 accepted sightings this year by the Official Loch Ness monster Sightings Register.

This article originally appeared on The Sun and has been republished with permission