In a fascinating development, Google Maps recently detected a possible bean-shaped 'underwater island' in the Arabian Sea near Kerala's Kochi, which has become a subject of curiosity among experts.

The satellite image showing the mysterious island was first noticed out by the Chellanam Karshika Tourism Development Society. The president advocate KX Julappan posted a screenshot of Google Maps showing the island-like structure on Facebook.

The organization later informed the Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies (KUFOS) about the discovery.

What has puzzled many is that there is no visible land or structure at the spot, whereas according to Google Maps, the bean-shaped island could be 8km long and 3.5km wide.

The officials at KUFOS are planning to investigate the matter further.

"Looking at Google Maps, this looks like any other underwater island that we see across the globe. There have been similar observations, and there is a specific shape also for this. But we don't know what it is made of - whether it is sand or clay and whether it's distributed regularly. We can only find that out through an investigation. Only after that, we can say anything concrete about this," Vice Chancellor of KUFOS, K Riji John was quoted by The News Minute as saying.

John says that members of the fishing community have raised doubts whether this formation is the result of dredging by the Cochin Port.

"We have to check this possibility too. Normally, due to factors like underwater current, littoral drift, processes like accretion (coastal sediment returning  to shore), or erosion of coast, are observed. In Kerala itself, towards the south region, there is the problem of erosion, while in areas like Vypeen (in Ernakulam district), kms-long accretion is observed. We cannot say exactly whether this phenomenon is also due to the same reason," he added. 

To locate the place in Google map click here